Friday
Friday 27th June 2025.
June 26, 2025
At least 10,000 teachers have appeared at the regional offices of the Ministry of Education (Meduca) or at the central office to regularize their status as eligible teachers and submit their resumes, as part of the process the entity is promoting to replace the educators who have been on strike since April 23 .
The Minister of Education, Lucy Molinar , emphasized that this massive response demonstrates the commitment of thousands of educators to the continuity of learning. She explained that when a teacher is replaced, they are formally notified, an administrative process is initiated, and they are temporarily suspended while a new teacher takes over as interim teacher. During this period, the affected teacher can exercise all legal remedies permitted by law.
Molinar also acknowledged that errors have been made in the allocation of unpaid leave, affecting some teachers who shouldn’t have been on that status . ” I publicly apologize , because there were people who shouldn’t have been affected by this situation. We are already working to correct it with the Comptroller’s Office,” he stated.
Regarding the payment of teachers who have already returned to work, Molinar reported that the salaries will be processed between today and tomorrow , and that the team has been strengthened to address these cases more quickly.
Regarding the possible return to classes for striking teachers on July 1 , the minister was emphatic: “ That’s the problem when we mix education with politics. We can’t continue punishing students for interests unrelated to their right to learn .”
Molinar emphasized that this generation, affected by the pandemic, has only had one full year of secondary school. “ It’s not fair to continue condemning them to further delays. That’s a historical mistake we can’t repeat ,” he concluded.
In this context, a special, temporary procedure for the appointment of teachers was approved this week , with the aim of ” restoring the teaching and learning process ” in the educational centers affected by the strike.
Executive Decree No. 17 , signed on Tuesday, June 24 by the President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino , and Minister Lucy Molinar , establishes an agile mechanism that will allow the expeditious appointment of teachers and professors , provided they meet the requirements for each vacancy.
This executive measure comes amid the national strike called by the main teachers’ unions since April 23, in rejection of Law 462, which reformed the Social Security Fund (CSS), among other demands.
Molinar’s statements were made during the presentation of the most recent results of the Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study (ERCE post-pandemic) , prepared by the Latin American Laboratory for the Evaluation of the Quality of Education (Llece) of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) .
The Ministry of Health (Minsa) has already secured the funds to pay the consortium Salud e Higiene Hospitalaria (led by Hombres de Blanco , SA) to provide cleaning and disinfection services in six hospitals in the first six months of 2025.
The National Assembly ‘s Budget Committee approved a transfer of at least $5.9 million to the Ministry of Health (MINSA) to cover these projects, which are scheduled to conclude on June 30.
Deputy Health Minister Manuel Zambrano said the funds come from budget cuts to the Agricultural Development Bank (BDA) , recommended by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) .
Last December, the consortium led by Hombres de Banco was awarded two direct contracts for the cleaning and disinfection of six Ministry of Health hospitals, for a total of $5.4 million.
One of the contracts, worth $2.8 million, is to clean the Nicolás A. Solano and San Miguel Arcángel hospitals and the Matías Hernández Mental Health Institute in West Panama.
The other is for $2.6 million and will be provided at the Anita Moreno, Joaquín Pablo Franco Sayas, and Cecilio A. Castillero hospitals in Azuero.
The transfer of funds approved by the deputies is for an amount greater than the sum of the two contracts awarded to the consortium. The deputy minister did not explain what he will do with the remaining $500,000.
There is a third contract, also for six months, for the cleaning of the Luis “Chicho” Fábrega Hospital in Santiago (Veraguas) and the Aquilino Tejeira Hospital in Penonomé (Coclé), for just over $2.4 million. The Ministry of Health awarded these works to the Hospital Biosecurity consortium.
Hospital Biosecurity had the contract for the cleaning and disinfection of the eight hospitals, for $30.8 million, for 24 months, until December 31, 2024.
The Ministry of Health (MINSA) opted not to add an extension to the contract. Instead, it launched an online bidding process and divided the eight hospitals into three separate contracts: two for the group led by Hombres de Blanco and one for Hospital Biosecurity.
Sicarelle Holding, Inc. also participated in the online bidding process, but its offer was not accepted.
Sicarelle already provided the service, even before Hospital Biosecurity. It began in 2017, with a contract originally for two years and $14.9 million. In practice, it was extended to 10 weeks, which extended the contract until December 31, 2022. In the end, Sicarelle was paid almost $53.6 million.
The company has not only obtained the aforementioned contracts with the Ministry of Health.
On February 11, Mexico City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi extended the cleaning contract for the San Felipe Neri Market, a favor from Men in White, for a period of seven months, for a sum of $370 million.
This, despite Mizrachi having previously denounced a “tremendous mess and poorly executed contracts” inherited from his predecessor.
Tocumen International Airport, SA (Aitsa) also awarded Hombres de Blanco an $11 million contract in 2022 to clean the terminal. However, months ago, both parties decided to terminate the relationship after detecting serious and numerous irregularities in its execution and due to problems with contract compliance.
On April 24, 2025, President José Raúl Mulino referred for the first time publicly to the container port being built on Margarita Island , Colón province .
He did not hide his dissatisfaction with the contractor.
“Margarita Island, under my administration, doesn’t have the slightest chance as it is structured. A new bidding process will be launched in due course, and the necessary decisions will be made to clear the table of all these obstacles,” the president promised.
Mulino returned to the subject two weeks later.
“The board of directors of the AMP [ Panama Maritime Authority ] has already cancelled that concession,” it announced on May 8.
But time has passed and everything remains the same.
The changes announced by the president have not materialized, and the contracting company, called Panama Colon Container Port (PCCP) , continues to occupy the seabed concession: without valid bonds, without registering any activity, and without paying rent or fees to the AMP.
How did he do it?
Knocking on the door of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) .
The PCCP has filed four constitutional guarantee appeals this month.
They all aim at the same thing: to prevent the AMP from cancelling the seabed concession contracts on which it intends to build a cargo port and, eventually, a container yard on Margarita Island, one of the most privileged areas for navigation and international trade, located at the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal , next to the Colon Container Terminal (CCT) and Manzanillo International Terminal (MIT) .
The four appeals were admitted and distributed between June 2 and 6. Each one has a different speaker: they were distributed among the chambers of magistrates Ariadne García, Miriam Cheng, Ángela Russo , and Olmedo Arrocha .
One of the injunctions is directed against JD Resolution No. 028-2024 , which states in one of its articles that the AMP board of directors will have access to information and documentation related to trade secrets or confidential information obtained by the State, as a result of the regulation of economic activities, as well as notes, correspondence, and documents related to negotiations of any kind, including information related to national security. For all these reasons, the content of the board of directors’ minutes is considered restricted access.
La Prensa sent a questionnaire to the AMP seeking more information on the Margarita Island issue. At the time of writing, the agency had not submitted its responses.
Previously, the AMP had refused to provide details, claiming that the process has not been finalized, specifically because of appeals and complaints from the PCCP.
The Panamanian Chamber of Commerce, Industries, and Agriculture’s job fair exceeded expectations, attracting approximately 2,000 people interested in applying for one of the 500 vacancies offered by 38 companies, including national and multinational corporations and groups from various sectors.
The event, held on June 24 and 25, initially attracted 1,500 registered visitors, but more than 500 additional people who hadn’t registered also arrived and were given the opportunity to explore the various offerings at the fair.
“When a person has decent employment, their household economy is boosted, their quality of life improves, and they contribute directly to the country. That’s why, as part of this business association, we are committed to concrete actions like these,” emphasized Juan Arias, president of the CCIAP, referring to this activity.
The Chamber of Commerce is expected to replicate this experience in the interior of the country due to the large turnout at this edition in Panama City.
“Organizing this fair is part of private enterprise’s commitment to Panama, because every job created means a life that changes, a family that grows, and a community that progresses,” Arias said.
The president of the Chamber of Commerce stated that according to figures from the Comptroller General of the Republic, as of October 2024, there were a total of 24,000 fewer private sector employees than in 2012, not to mention the 63,000 additional civil servants and 264,000 additional informal workers.
He stated that the goal is to recover that workforce and open up new job opportunities.
During the two-day job fair, people of all ages attended, and a large group of women was noticeable.
Starting this Thursday, June 26, Air Europa increased the number of weekly flights connecting Panama with Europe via the strategic hub of Madrid-Barajas Airport from six to seven.
The airline thus consolidates its commitment to this route and responds to growing demand.
The number of available seats will exceed 220,000 in 2025 , representing a 6% increase over the previous year.
The airline expects an increase in the number of passengers carried, which could exceed 192,000 , with an occupancy rate of around 87%. So far this year alone, more than 95,000 people have flown with Air Europa on this route.
“Connecting Panama and Madrid with a daily frequency is the best demonstration not only of the growth of this route, but also of Air Europa’s support for operations between the two countries. We want to continue contributing to the development and expansion of economic and cultural activity on both sides of the Atlantic, providing the best offerings and the greatest possibilities to customize trips to suit our customers,” says Carlos Conde , Air Europa Country Manager for Central America, Mexico, and Venezuela.