Monday
Monday 15th July 2024.
July 14, 2024
The mayor of the Colón district, Diógenes Galván , found himself faced with a complex situation: he discovered that hundreds of officials were collecting salaries without showing up for work and more than 20 people were incurring high representation expenses without clear justification.
In addition, he found numerous contracts riddled with irregularities.
This week, Galván reported that 28 cars are missing from the Colón municipality, a commune that in the 2019-2024 five-year period was under the command of Alex Lee, of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) .
The complaint was made after officials from the Directorate of Administration of Seized Assets of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) told Galván that during the administration of Alex Lee they handed over the vehicles in custody to the municipality of Colón.
However, the new mayor of Colón came across a series of other anomalies that he told La Prensa about. For example, he stressed that there were many people who clearly had no functions within the local government, but did earn salaries.
In this context, he explained that the list was made up of about 1,400 people and of that total, about 500 were detected as “bottles.” “These people are being disqualified from their positions,” he added” This is how Galván describes what he found when he took office as mayor: “It took time because of the complex situation of the municipality. I thought that in one or two weeks we would have everything ready, but no.”
Regarding the salary of the previous mayor, Galván said that the amount was close to 10,000 dollars, including salary, representation expenses, transportation, allowances, among other benefits. Although he only earned 3,500 dollars in salary.
He even indicated that it was not just Lee but several officials. In total, he indicated that there were more than 20 workers from the Municipality of Colón with representation expenses.
He was also struck by the existence of five contracts for an amount of 49,000 dollars each, for Covid-19 care dated April of this year. “When we had already overcome the issue of the virus, contracts were still being made to acquire supplies that we could not find in the municipality. It is an accumulated amount of almost 250,000 dollars,” said the new mayor.
Faced with this reality, Galván has scheduled a press conference next Thursday, in which he will provide more details about findings and anomalies in the Municipality of Colón.
Regarding the vehicles that were in the custody of the municipality of Colón, Galván said that the cars are not in the municipality’s office. The Public Prosecutor’s Office , headed by Attorney General Javier Caraballo, has already issued a statement on the matter.
In a statement, the Ministry of Finance said it does not have the authority to decide on the use and custody of provisionally seized assets, since they are placed at the disposal of the MEF until the case is decided by the competent court.
“If any complaints are filed regarding any of the seized assets in the custody of any entity, it is our constitutional and legal duty to initiate the corresponding criminal investigations,” the statement said.
The MEF assigns the use and temporary custody of seized assets, such as vehicles,to public institutions or non-governmental organizations. In both cases, the custodian assumes responsibility for the insurance coverage of the asset, as well as the costs of its conservation and maintenance while the custody lasts.
The ultimate goal is to dispose of these assets for sale or liquidation and for the resulting funds to be transferred to the MEF’s Special Account for Confiscated Assets for subsequent distribution, as established by Law 57 of 2013.
In addition to all these irregularities, Lee left a debt with the Social Security Fund (CSS) of almost 7,000,000 dollars. In other words, they deducted the employer-employee contribution from the workers, but did not pay the CSS.
Meanwhile Tax collection in the San Miguelito Municipality is beginning to pick up. Mayor Irma Hernández said that in the first few days, revenues are beginning to experience growth.
For example, the daily record – since he took office on July 2 – the amount collected is between $40,000 and $50,000, he said.
“In our first week of fundraising we have raised more than in the first weeks of previous administrations,” Hernandez said on the program Debate Abierto .
According to the figures he handles, during the previous administration the monthly income was about $600 thousand, while the expenses exceeded one million dollars.
Hernández recalled that the increase in tax collection is due, among other things, to the new strategy being carried out by the municipality: the moratorium for taxpayers of the business, advertising and vehicle circulation tax that was established in Municipal Agreement No. 17 of July 9, 2024.
Business and advertising tax payers will have a 25% exemption for all those who pay the full annuity by December 31, 2024, as long as they meet the requirements established in the agreement.
Taxpayers with any arrears and who wish to pay their arrears in full until the 2023 tax period will be forgiven 100% of the interest and surcharges and 100% of the fines.
Regarding the business tax payment arrangement, 100% of the interest and surcharges will be waived, as well as 50% as a fine for non-payment that occurred up to the 2023 fiscal period.
For the vehicle moratorium, 100% of surcharges and fines will be waived for taxpayers who pay the entire debt for compliance with the vehicle circulation tax generated from the 2023 fiscal period.
As for vehicle payment arrangements, 100% of the surcharges and 50% of the fines for non-payment of the tax will be waived.
The moratorium hours at the San Miguelito Mayor’s collection agencies located in Los Andes and Metromall will be Thursday and Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and this Saturday and Sunday it will be operating from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.
The President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino, appointed Lorenzo Rivera as the new Director of Administration of Seized Assets of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF).
Rivera was the general director of international economic relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was also a credit analyst at Chase Manhattan Bank. He also held the position of credit officer and vice president of Marine Midland Bank NA and a planning economist at the Ministry of Public Works.
He also provided financial consulting for the firm Indesa Capital Inc.
A few days ago it was revealed that Gustavo Pérez , who has been convicted for the crimes of illegal possession of weapons, illegal wiretapping and embezzlement, was aspiring to occupy this position. However, Minister Felipe Chapman assured that Pérez would not be in charge of this department.
This department is responsible for supervising the custody, maintenance, conservation and security of assets through their inspection or supervision, as well as taking the necessary measures to ensure their efficient administration, integrity and preservation.
A criminal complaint for the possible commission of a crime against public administration was filed by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (Cciap) .
The appeal was filed by the president of the Chamber, Juan Arias , together with the legal team. “It is not enough to be indignant, it is time to act,” he said.
In a statement, the Cciap explained that the complaint is directed at officials from the Institute for the Training and Utilization of Human Resources (Ifarhu), the Comptroller General of the Republic or any other State institution, as well as private individuals who have received money improperly, so that “the full weight of the law falls on them” regardless of who it is.
“It is not just about punishing those responsible, but about sending a clear and forceful message: in Panama, we will not tolerate corruption,” the statement said.
A week ago, the business sector urged the new authorities to file the appropriate criminal charges.
For the Chamber, part of the keys for the country to move towards development reside in education and the improvement of public affairs. “Since we learned of the lack of transparency and discretion in the granting of economic aid by Ifarhu, we realized that we could not remain silent, much less be indifferent to the facts,” he added.
The Cciap said it is unacceptable that those who should ensure the proper use of public resources “fail in their duty and betray the trust of citizens.”
“Therefore, we expect all new officials to conduct themselves in a transparent and honest manner. Furthermore, we demand that the Comptroller General of the Republic reveal once and for all who are the beneficiaries of these financial aids, which he decided to hide without any moral justification.”
“Impunity cannot be an option, the fight against corruption is a shared responsibility – we must all get involved – and only through unity and determination will we be able to build a country of opportunities,” he added.
This criminal action comes weeks after the scandal and growing public outrage over the discretionary disbursement of millions of dollars – during the previous administration led by Laurentino Cortizo – in the controversial economic aid program.
A database revealed by La Prensa revealed that 2,144 people benefited between July 7, 2019 and May 24, 2023. The amount disbursed was $141.6 million. However, these figures only represent part of the complete picture, since the beneficiaries of another 2,759 disbursements are still unknown. That is why the Cciap urges Gerardo Solís , comptroller, to reveal the information.
Many of the financial aids were allocated to officials and relatives of ministers, deputies, diplomats, state suppliers, members of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), including former President Cortizo. They also granted these aids to people with no apparent financial need.
José Raúl Mulino , President of the Republic, promised that financial aid will be allocated only to students with merit and whose families have incomes of no more than $2,000 per month. He also assured that Ifarhu will cease to be a “symbol of excesses and favoritism.”
Construction work on the project “Expansion to six lanes – Beach Corridor (section: La Chorrera-Santa Cruz)” , which is being developed towards West Panama, continues to be carried out and as of June 26, work progress was 81%.
The work should be completed by November 28, according to the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) . Currently, the 1.7-kilometer bridge has already been built in the La Pesa sector of La Chorrera. At this point, the New Jersey walls have already been placed, the viaduct has been asphalted, the lighting has been installed, the viaduct drainage works have been carried out and the signage has been placed, among other aspects.
This viaduct was built with six lanes : three towards the interior and three towards Panama City; while in the lower part, the four existing lanes will be maintained for local traffic, such as buses, taxis, businesses and other vehicles that need to move between communities.
The project, which is 4.4 kilometers long, also includes the rehabilitation of the four lanes of the Inter-American Highway, from the highway exit to the El Nazareno sector in La Chorrera. In the Panama Oeste sector, there is a daily traffic flow of more than 80 thousand vehicles, which is why residents are already demanding more quality road infrastructure. However, delays in the works keep traffic heavy in this sector, added to other projects such as the construction of Metro line 3.
The works that have been carried out include the installation of drainage under the viaduct, the relocation of drinking water and electrical utility pipes, the construction of piles, the construction of the Los Calderones and La Arenosa return, as well as the construction of the pedestrian crossing of Loma Brígida and Villa Mireya in Capira, among other tasks.
The work, which is being carried out by Grupo Puentes y Calzadas Infraestructuras, SLU, Panama branch, has a cost of $282,181,670.70, of which there is a financial advance of $67,040,150.66 (23.76%). This contract was assigned by the MOP to this company on August 24, 2022, through addendum No. 2, when Rafael Sabonge served as minister of the portfolio.
It should be remembered that this project had its origins in the administration of Juan Carlos Varela when, on May 22, 2018, the order to proceed was given to the Corredor de las Playas consortium, made up of the companies FCC Construcción, SA and Cicsa. It consisted of 32.5 kilometers of road at a cost of $603 million; however, the work was stopped in 2021 and transferred to another company, with a budget cut and leaving only six kilometers of construction.