Friday
Friday 4th July 2025.
July 3, 2025
Independent deputy Roberto Zúñiga, head of the independent Vamos party, directly pointed to Comptroller Anel Flores as one of the officials who exerted pressure on July 1 to sway votes in favor of Shirley Castañedas , candidate of Realizando Metas (RM) and the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), in the battle for the presidency of the National Assembly.
In a telephone interview with La Prensa , Zúñiga said that the comptroller exerted pressure in conjunction with other officials from the Comptroller’s Office. He confirmed that one of them was Ventura Vega , the institution’s current secretary general, and added: “There was another person from the Comptroller’s Office whose name I don’t know.”
On July 1, the installation of the new legislature was paralyzed for more than five hours. The session was postponed amid an atmosphere of uncertainty, while representatives from different parties reported pressure, offers, and threats from emissaries of the Executive Branch and the Comptroller’s Office to gain votes for Castañedas, the personal lawyer of former President Ricardo Martinelli . However, the government’s gambit failed: Jorge Herrera of the Panameñista Party was elected with 37 votes to Castañeda’s 34.
Zúñiga said he observed unusual activity that day. “I saw a lot of movement, with them entering the cafeteria, talking to some legislators, and talking on the phone .” He said these actions were directed at legislators from Democratic Change, the Panameñista Party, and even the Vamos coalition. He did not mention names.
The maneuver was activated after it became known that Shirley Castañeda had visited the Presidency of the Republic, from where President José Raúl Mulino manages, a widely criticized incident. “What did she do? To ask for help getting votes?” asked former congressman Juan Diego Vásquez.
From the Vamos party, several deputies denounced what they considered executive branch interference in legislative matters. “What is happening today in this Assembly leaves the government in a very bad light before the country,” posted Representative Yamireliz Chong. Luis Duke, also from Vamos, put it bluntly: “Four hours of backstabbing and they still haven’t gotten the votes. Give up.”
However, Comptroller Flores denies being behind the pressure. “They can hardly say that I called anyone to exert pressure,” he said.
“I have a pile of dossiers and resumes handed to me by all these deputies who are speaking ill of me today, asking me to appoint wives, nieces… And well, there’s no problem, I’m going to spread the word,” Flores added.
Flores cited the case of Representative Ricardo Vigil , from Circuit 4-3 (Bugaba and Tierras Altas), of the Panameñista Party, who allegedly had a close associate who held a position in the Comptroller’s Office fired.
“I haven’t fired anyone, so don’t play the victim. Why don’t we ask him how things are going? He’s appointed to the Comptroller’s Office; that was a favor he asked of me (…)” he asserted.
He insisted that he doesn’t think it’s right to try to insinuate things that aren’t true. “That’s slander,” he said.
A network comprising officials from the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) , the Ministry of Health (Minsa) , and private individuals was apprehended by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office as part of an alleged corruption and money laundering scheme involving simulated payments to private companies.
The operations were carried out in the provinces of Panama , West Panama and the Azuero region , where two MEF officials , two Minsa officials and six individuals were arrested .
According to investigations, the group allegedly managed to divert $556,543 belonging to a private company.
According to the prosecution, the officials sent emails to various institutions announcing a supposed “change” in the account numbers of companies with which the State held financial obligations. This led to disbursements to the personal accounts of members of the network, who then distributed the money to other accounts.
Furthermore, those involved allegedly falsified public documents to support the fraudulent payments and divert the funds to the criminal group’s accounts.
The investigation began after a complaint was filed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) on January 18 , after detecting the irregularity. This led to Operation Acropolis , in which the Public Ministry located and arrested the alleged perpetrators.
The prosecutor’s office has requested banking information from the 10 suspects to establish the traceability of the funds and determine whether more people are involved.
In parallel, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office has executed proceedings related to allegations of alleged embezzlement in other institutions, such as the National Council for Sustainable Development (CONADES) . In this case, four people have already been charged with embezzlement within the Basic Health Program , with a potential financial loss estimated at $8 million .
Possible acts of corruption are also being investigated in the National Decentralization Authority , the Ministry of Housing and Territorial Planning (Miviot) , the Institute for the Training and Use of Human Resources (Ifarhu) , the Ministry of Education (Meduca) and again the Minsa .
The 10 detainees will be brought before a magistrate at 2:00 p.m. this Thursday for charges and the application of precautionary measures.
Manuel Soriano , mayor of the Pocrí district in the province of Los Santos, was arrested this Thursday, July 3, by the National Police during an operation led by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Soriano, elected in the 2024 elections under the banner of the Panameñista and Democratic Change parties, is under investigation for crimes against public administration, in the form of embezzlement, to the detriment of the State.
The 53-year-old politician was arrested in the Paritilla district, according to the National Police.
According to research, the process dates back to 2021, during the previous administration of the National Council for Sustainable Development (Conades), when several projects were planned for implementation in rural areas of the country.
However, according to judicial authorities, these projects “were not developed nor were any actions taken ,” despite the full amount stipulated in the contracts having been collected.
“This breach of contract resulted in several million dollars in financial losses to the State,” stated an official statement from the National Police.
The president of the Panameñista Party, José Blandón, described the politician’s arrest as “suspicious.” “Manuel is a professional, honest, and upright, who has stood up in the proceedings related to CONADES contracts, where he is accused of alleged negligent conduct due to the alleged unpaid bonds, which has been proven not to be the case. These are proceedings that take years,” he wrote on his X account.
Authorities from the San Miguelito Mayor’s Office and the Ministry of Housing and Land Use Planning (Miviot ) toured several strategic points in the district this week, where stations for the cable car system known as the teleférico are planned to be built.
Irma Hernández, mayor of the district , and Frank Osorio, deputy minister of Territorial Planning , visited the area known as El Lago, in Los Andes, located between the districts of Amelia Denis de Icaza and Omar Torrijos.
In this area, the San Miguelito Mayor’s Office seeks to change the urban landscape by developing a Local Territorial Planning Plan, which includes the implementation of a network of public spaces, including a park for community use.
“The San Miguelito cable car, whose bidding process is close to completion, will connect thousands of residents to Metro stations,” the president stated.
The project includes six stations : two located in Panama City and four in the district of San Miguelito. The first will be in Santa Marta, a district of Panamá Norte (Torrijos Carter), the starting point of the system. The Valle de Urracá, Mano de Piedra, and Samaria stations will follow.
Another station will be Cincuentenario, which will be integrated with the Metro Line 2 station of the same name, located on the Social Security Fund’s land , known as “La Roca.” The final station will be on Balboa, near the toll zone.
The San Miguelito Mayor’s Office remains vigilant in ensuring that the four stations within the district meet the minimum needs of their respective communities.
The Panama Canal continues to charge tolls for all vessels transiting the interoceanic waterway, whether merchant, commercial, or military, regardless of the country under which the vessels fly their flag.
This was reiterated by the Minister for Panama Canal Affairs, José Ramón Icaza , when he explained that there has been no progress on the creation of a compensation mechanism to allow for cost-neutral operations for U.S. military vessels transiting the waterway.
“This is not a binding document; it is a declaration by both countries, Panama and the United States. On the one hand, it recognizes the Neutrality Treaty, as well as the autonomy of the Panama Canal Authority and the sovereignty of the Republic of Panama. It also highlights the importance of strict compliance with the provisions of the Neutrality Treaty, which provides for the expedited passage of U.S. warships and auxiliary warships through the canal,” said Minister Icaza.
The minister referred to the joint declaration on security matters he signed last April with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, which reiterates respect for and recognition of Panamanian sovereignty over the interoceanic waterway, as established by the Neutrality Treaty and the legal framework governing its operation, as well as the Constitutional Title and the Organic Law of the Canal.
The statement also indicated that work would be done to develop a mechanism that would compensate security services with tolls for warships and auxiliary vessels, seeking a cost-neutral approach. This mechanism would be evaluated jointly with the Panamanian Ministry of Security.
However, this Thursday, July 3, Minister José Ramón Icaza stated that although the possibility of establishing a cost-neutral compensation mechanism through high-level security dialogue is being considered, nothing has been done.
” This dialogue has not yet taken place, and in that sense, there is no progress we can report ,” he said.
He reiterated that the Canal cannot allow any vessel to pass through free of charge.