Monday
Monday 21st October 2024.
October 20, 2024
Lawyer Mauricio Cort allegedly received 6.5 million euros (about $7 million at the current exchange rate)
A report prepared by the Andorra Police at the request of the Spanish Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office and sent to the Central Court of Instruction No. 2 of the National Court, within the case that, for alleged corruption and money laundering, is being followed by the construction company
The Spanish company Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC) allegedly used Andorra’s financial system to pay 6.5 million euros (about $7 million at the current exchange rate) in “illicit commissions” to lawyer Mauricio Cort.
The payments were in exchange for FCC being awarded at least seven state projects in Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Costa Rica, worth 434 million euros ($471.7 million).
The information is collected in a report prepared last July by agents of the Andorra Police , which is cited in a note from the Spanish newspaper El País , released this Friday, October 18, 2024 .
According to the report, Cort – described as a “fixer specialising in collecting bribes from companies in exchange for contracts” – was hired by FCC in 2010, during the government of Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014). In fact, in Spain, Cort has been identified as a “front man” for the Martinellis.
During that period, the Spanish company obtained contracts such as the construction of the Luis Chicho Fábrega Hospital (for 127 million euros) or the rehabilitation of the Centenario bridge (for 27.6 million).
In Andorra, Cort is being investigated for an alleged crime against the administration of justice, the Spanish newspaper reported.
The payments were made into two accounts at Banca Privada d’Andorra (BPA) , in the name of the companies Neecel Corp. and Arados del Plata , both registered in Montevideo, Uruguay, and in which Juan Carlos Siekavica appeared as a front man .
“ The lawyer deposited three million in FCC commissions from three Mexican instrumental firms into the Andorran bank. And he collected 3.5 million in the European country from a transfer issued from the United Mizhari Bank of Zurich (Switzerland) ,” wrote El País .
The newspaper transcribes the following paragraph from the Andorra Police report: “ All the evidence found during our investigation confirms the theory that Cort acted as a bridge to channel funds that were presumably intended to pay illicit commissions .”
In addition to the works in Panama, the payments to Cort would have guaranteed that FCC would be awarded the construction of the central judicial complex in Managua, section five of the Longitudinal Norte highway in El Salvador and the remodeling of national route three in Costa Rica.
Since 2019, the Spanish National Court has been investigating FCC for paying illegal commissions to secure the award of works in Panama between 2010 and 2014.
On October 10, Felipe Chapman , head of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), withdrew from the National Assembly the first bill that dictated the general state budget for 2025, a document that he presented to the Justo Arosemena Palace on October 7.
He did so to address errors pointed out to him by the Budget Committee: he ignored some laws, including the one on Fiscal Social Responsibility, since in the expenses calculated for 2025 the deficit would exceed the 1.5% of the gross domestic product (GDP) allowed by the current law. He did not allocate 7% of the GDP to the education sector, as provided for by Law 362, among other issues. The issue sparked a heated debate among various sectors of public life. Some economists even claimed that the project was “improvised” and “unplanned.”
What happened? According to what Minister Chapman has explained, everything starts with the fact that the previous government (Laurentino Cortizo 2019-2024) left a draft budget prepared, “which was totally incompatible with the fiscal and economic vision” of this administration, so it was decided to build another one “from scratch”.
However, he said that mistakes were made during that race, “whether intentionally or not,” which he promised to investigate.
“We have reconstructed a budget in less than 100 days. And in that race, there were some errors that were made by people working, whether they did it on purpose or not, we will know and I will investigate it. Those errors have been corrected and will be addressed,” the minister recently said on Panama Live.
Chapman filed a new document on October 15, this time for the amount of $26,835.2 million.
This new document modifies some figures that in the previous project raised several questions. For example, the Autonomous University of Chiriquí (Unachi) , a higher education center that is in the public eye for the millions invested in juicy salaries, was allocated $107.9 million, a figure almost equal to that of 2024, when it received $108 million. But now, in the new budget project, it is allocated only $50 million , 53.7% less than this year.
The opposite happened with the Assembly. The previous document stated that it would have $88 million by 2024. However, with the economic letter that Chapman presented to the Legislature on October 15, the amount increases to $98.7 million.
Chapman began to present the budget project to the respective committee last Thursday. The debate continues as of this Monday. In fact, the Budget Committee declared itself in permanent session to analyze the figure with which the State will work next year.
The country’s business sector said it is encouraging to see how the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) , Felipe Chapman, has resumed a leading role in the preparation of the 2025 general state budget, after “years” of being held hostage by a “clientelist National Assembly.”
In its Sunday statement, the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (Cciap) said that it was this clientelist assembly that had control over the preparation of the budget, with a vision of seeking electoral gains and political favors.
“Both the Fiscal Responsibility Law and the draft general budget of the State of Panama have been approved under short-term partisan considerations, leaving aside the real needs of the country and the responsible management of everyone’s money,” he said.
According to the Chamber, the result of this “politicization” has been disastrous: billions of dollars wasted, with no tangible improvement in public services, including education and health, infrastructure or the quality of life of Panamanians.
Added to this is a deteriorated international image “that sees us as an unserious country that plays with figures as it pleases and modifies the fiscal responsibility law at will in order to supposedly comply with it.”
The economic activity generated by the expansion of the Panama Canal and the extraordinary income from other economic activities have concealed this waste. “But today we are faced with reality: a serious crisis of income and financial stability that can no longer be hidden,” he said.
Now, says the Cciap, the country is paying the price for having allowed its budget, the main tool for implementing its public policy, to become a tool for political reward or punishment, instead of an instrument to promote development and the well-being of its citizens.
They therefore urge Panamanians not to allow this story to continue. “The General State Budget must be a tool to promote social progress, not for abuse or partisan greed.
Business leaders believe that the responsibility of designing a budget in line with the situation is not only economic, but also moral.
“The Minister of Economy and Finance and his team have shown that it is possible to get back on the right path, prioritizing the country’s true needs over particular interests. However, this effort should not fall solely on the MEF. Society as a whole, from citizens to business and social leaders, must demand that this process remains focused on the common good and not be diverted again by political pressures ,” the Chamber added.
Starting this Monday, October 21, the Assembly’s Budget Committee plans to begin the discussion of the project in its first debate, including budget hearings. The State budget for 2025 amounts to $26,835.2 million .
Several main streets in the capital were flooded on Sunday afternoon, October 20, due to the heavy rains that have been recorded in recent hours.
The Avenida Nacional, near Cabo Verde, was flooded, interrupting regular traffic. Drivers had to make several maneuvers to get out of the area. Some daredevils crossed the water-filled street with their cars.
A section of Avenida de los Mártires was also flooded, as was Avenida Manuel Espinosa Batista, near the Iglesia del Carmen. Street flooding was also reported in San Francisco, Bella Vista and Villa Zaíta.
On the Inter-American Highway, in Capira, a huge tree fell across two of its four lanes.
The Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology of Panama (Imhpa) reported that it maintains the warning notice for scattered showers with electrical activity over several provinces of the country.
The number of Panamanians registered with a political party continues to decline. In the last year, a total of 113,110 citizens have resigned from a political organization, according to the latest official report from the Electoral Tribunal .
In October 2023, 1,708,493 Panamanians were registered ; a year later the number drops to 1,595,383 .
The Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) is the party that has seen the largest loss of members: from 709,998 to 612,048. That is, it lost 97,950. A fall that has been accentuated after its electoral defeat in the elections last May.
One month after its relaunch, the Ministry of Social Development ‘s (Mides) 147 hotline has registered a total of 948 mental health consultations , provided by a team of psychologists and social workers specialized in crisis management. This service, which operates 24 hours a day in a confidential and free manner, was relaunched on September 16 by the entity.
According to the Mides report, most of the calls were for guidance (428), followed by psychological support (419) and guidance for other services (101). As for the reasons for the calls, the need to be heard leads with 171 cases, followed by mental health guidance (148), anxiety (98) and suicidal ideation (49). The analysis of the user profile shows that the age group with the highest demand for assistance is that of people between 40 and 49 years old, followed by those between 30 and 39 years old and, subsequently, those between 50 and 59 years old. The inquiries come mainly from Western Panama, followed by Central Panama, Chiriquí and Northern Panama. In addition, 67% of the calls are made by women.
Miguel González, psychologist and coordinator of the Mides Public-Private Alliance , emphasized the importance of the population using the 147 line to receive professional support, highlighting the need to be heard by qualified specialists. He called for responsible use of the service, since 261 prank calls have been registered, which hinder access to people who really need help.
The service, which receives an average of 32 calls a day, has also faced the challenge of 900 calls classified as “closed or silent,” possibly from people who did not dare to express their problems. However, González stressed that the telephone line is available to listen to anyone, regardless of the time or day.