Friday
Friday 26th April 2024.
April 25, 2024
Judge Olmedo Arrocha , rapporteur of the unconstitutionality lawsuit presented against the agreement of the Electoral Court that designated José Raúl Mulino as presidential candidate of the Realizing Goals and Alliance parties, explained that the president of the Supreme Court of Justice (CSJ), María Eugenia López Arias, can call an extraordinary plenary session to decide this matter.
Likewise, five magistrates could call an extraordinary plenary session, if they so consider.
These were part of Arrocha’s explanations, in a press conference held this Thursday, April 25, when there are 10 days left until the general elections.
Arrocha, who warned that these explanations are made as a substantiator and not as a spokesperson for the Court, said that 88 allegations were admitted regarding this lawsuit: 71 in favor of the constitutionality of the TE act and 17 against.
“Now it is up to me, within the 10 days that began on April 22, last Monday, until May 6, 2024, to prepare a draft ruling that I have to circulate to the rest of the magistrates” , he added.
Arrocha indicated that the draft ruling will be circulated among the other eight judges, simultaneously.
He added that on April 23 he requested information from the TE, which he considers “necessary to be able to finalize making a decision after having established a formed criterion of what should be what I am going to propose to the rest of the magistrates of the plenary session of the Court. Supreme Court.”
“As soon as we receive a response to said communication, we will be able to finalize the complete draft of the draft decision that we will circulate simultaneously to the rest of the magistrates,” he remarked.
Once the draft ruling is distributed, the process enters a new stage.
“What happens after the 10 days, which expire on May 6, 2024, for the preparation of the project? Alright, you have to put this project on read-through for 20 days. That is regulated in a Plenary agreement of February 9, 2012″, he pointed out.
If there are at least two observations, then Arrocha, as speaker, will have to bring this to the Plenary for discussion, so that it has debated, deliberated and voted on its decision. You can even lose the presentation if the majority considers that the operative part “is not sympathetic or does not agree with it.”
Arrocha indicated that the CSJ Plenary itself could “sovereignly” modify some processing deadlines, “such as the two observations.”
“The issue is in what context, in what opportunity, under what form this can be done, since we also have a previously established agreement, which is agreement 1375 of December 25, 2009, which establishes that this has to be done in a plenary meeting,” he noted.
The Minister of Commerce and Industries, Jorge Rivera Staff, indicated that the institution concluded the process of cancellation and annulment of all metal mining concessions in the country, as established by Law 407 of November 2023 , which imposed a mining moratorium. in response to the rejection generated by the contract that the State signed with the company Minera Panamá, a subsidiary of First Quantum.
The official noted that some companies are preparing “legal actions” against the annulment of their concessions, but affirmed that the Ministry has complied with the guidelines of Law No. 407 of November 3, 2023 .
Last March, Mici informed the National Assembly that 82 applications from companies intending to explore for metallic minerals had been rejected.
The denied applications are based on the provisions of Law No. 407, which prohibits the granting of concessions for the exploration, extraction, transportation and benefit of the exploitation of metal mining throughout the national territory.
To date, we are aware of at least six arbitration proceedings initiated against Panama; of which, four are linked to the Donoso mine and one to the cancellation of the Cerro Quema mine in the province of Los Santos.
The official also reacted to the comments of the executive director of First Quantum, Tristan Pascall, who mentioned that they hope to receive, after the May 5 elections, permission to export the 121 thousand tons of copper concentrate that are stored in the mine. .
“This is part of a media campaign that the company is carrying out regarding the concentrate, but we are conducting technical analyzes on the concentrate,” Staff said.
Panamanian Reynaldo Pérez Palacio, who was supposedly the head of a drug trafficking network that sent cocaine to the United States and Europe, was captured in Bogotá, the Colombian Prosecutor’s Office reported this Thursday.
Alias ’Rey’ was detained by members of the Technical Investigation Corps (CTI, of the Prosecutor’s Office) in a hotel “in response to an Interpol red notice issued by the Panamanian authorities, who are prosecuting him for charges related to money laundering and drug trafficking. “said the Prosecutor’s Office in a statement.
The international request specified that Pérez had at his disposal a structure that camouflaged cocaine in containers, cargo vehicles and planes that transported merchandise, to transport them from Panama to different destinations.
Likewise, it was known that he frequented Dubai and other countries to establish contacts for transnational cocaine trafficking. Pérez “supposedly” received money payments through international transfers that were triangulated to European and American banks, to finally reach the Panama banking system.
This result complements the work carried out by the Panamanian authorities, in the so-called ‘Exodus’ and ‘Whale’ operations, which allowed the capture of 51 people, the seizure of 10 firearms, ammunition, high-end vehicles and more than 140,000 dollars in cash.
The capture of Pérez was achieved in a joint effort by the Colombian Prosecutor’s Office and the Panamanian authorities.
The National Border Service (Senafront) reported that in the last few hours they seized 18 gallons of liquid cocaine and 300 packages of drugs in the Guna Yala region.
According to a preliminary report from Senafront, liquid cocaine was located through special investigation techniques, which were applied by anti-narcotics agents on Saler Island, Narganá.
Jorge Gobea, director of Senafront, explained that the 18 gallons contained 68 kilos of cocaine that were going to be sold in Guna Yala.
“This represents 204 thousand dollars in Panama and 1.3 million dollars in the United States, which is a considerable impact on the drug trafficking structure that they try to operate in the sector,” said Gobea.
In this procedure, two people were arrested, a craft boat with a 15 HP motor and two cell phones were seized.
On the other hand, Senafront reported that it seized about 300 rectangular packages of drugs, which were in eight packages wrapped with black cartridges, and multiple fuel tanks (16 15-gallon tanks).
Agents from the Puerto Obaldía battalion detected a go fast type boat , near the community of Carreto, which was pursued and while fleeing the boat ran aground in an inlet. The occupants fled and operations continue to locate them.
Likewise, a 22-foot fiberglass boat with a HP motor and 6 bullet ammunition, 38 caliber, was seized.
After a census carried out by the Urban and Home Cleaning Authority (AAUD), it was determined that 374 recyclers will be able to operate in the Cerro Patacón landfill, district of Ancón, in order to maintain stricter control of the personnel who enter the dump.
For this control, the AAUD gave a group of 50 segregators identification cards so that they can work within the assigned area, that is, in the recycling warehouse. According to Resolution 108-2024 of March 18, 2024 , supported by Law 51 of September 29, 2010 , 162 hectares that comprise the Cerro Patacón Landfill were declared restricted areas, as a security measure after the multiple fires that occurred in the landfill this year.
The decree includes, but is not limited to the shooting front or final disposal site; stages 1, 2 and 3; recycling bin; administrative offices and weighing station; tire layout; workshop; security checkpoints; and internal pathways of the landfill. In addition, the AAUD reiterated that unauthorized persons are still prohibited from entering the landfill area.
The census of the landfill’s professional recyclers was carried out by sociologist Michael Guzmán, from the AAUD, who began the process of delivering the cards to the recyclers. For these days, two work schedules were established: from 6:00 am to 5:00 pm for the day shift and from 6:00 pm to 6:00 am for the night shift.
Regarding the work of recyclers, the AAUD reported that in the recycling warehouse sector they are organizing so that only 30 trucks enter per day, those that take more recycling material to the landfill.
Data from the AAUD indicate that about 300 trucks enter Cerro Patacón every day, coming from the districts of Panama, San Miguelito and private companies.
Panamanian scientist Guillermo Antonio Ameer , professor of biomedical engineering, and director of the Center for Advanced Regenerative Engineering at Northwestern University , together with a team of scientists, created a bioelectronic sensor that allows continuous monitoring of bladder function over an extended period.
The medical advance, which promises to change the lives of people suffering from bladder dysfunction, is due to the development of this technology. This project combines a soft and flexible implant with a mobile application to monitor and control bladder function remotely and in real time.
While this new device is unnecessary for the average person, it could help people with paralysis, spina bifida, bladder cancer, or end-stage bladder disease, where bladder function is often compromised and may be necessary. bladder reconstruction surgery. The sensor system can also allow doctors to remotely and continuously monitor their patients to make more informed and faster treatment decisions.
“If the nerves in the bladder are damaged by surgery or a disease such as spina bifida, then the patient often loses sensation and does not realize when their bladder is full,” Ameer explained, adding that “to empty bladder, they often have to use catheters, which are uncomfortable and can cause painful infections. “We want to eliminate the use of catheters and avoid current bladder function monitoring procedures, which are highly invasive, very unpleasant and must be performed in a hospital or clinical setting.”