News
Tuesday 11th July 2023.
July 10, 2023
The process for the expulsion of Yanibel Ábrego from the Cambio Democrático (CD) party is ongoing, confirmed Rómulo Roux, president of that political organization and now a presidential candidate.
Roux indicated that the deputy had appealed the decision made on June 2 by the Court of Honor and Discipline to expel her. But, this week the Board of Directors would meet to discuss various issues, including the appeal.
The Court of Honor accepted and declared “proven” the facts of the complaint filed by Rafael Ponce González , who denounced Ábrego for alleged breach of the CD statute, by publicly supporting and promoting the electoral offer of another party: Realizando Metas (RM). , the new collective of Ricardo Martinelli.
Ábrego, who lost in the presidential primaries on Sunday, July 9, has met Martinelli several times and has publicly said that he wanted to control CD in order to make an electoral alliance with RM.
The recently elected president of the Municipal Council of San Miguelito and representative of the township of Belisario Porras, César Caballero, was sentenced to five years in prison for embezzlement to the detriment of the University of Panama (UP).
The information is contained in Edict 9 of January 5, 2022, issued by the Superior Court for Settlement of Criminal Cases of the First Judicial District, because of his defense processing a cassation appeal.
According to the document, in addition to the mayor, the criminal process includes four other people for the crime against the public administration, in the form of embezzlement, against the University of Panama.
Caballero, who received funds from parallel decentralization, is one of the corregimiento representatives close to deputy Raúl Pineda, also from the PRD.
In fact, its community board received $6.6 million dollars from parallel decentralization, which makes it the representative of the San Miguelito corregimiento that received the most funds from the National Decentralization Authority.
Caballero was chosen as president of the San Miguelito Municipal Council for the period July-December 2023.
With a 55% advance in the extension works of line 1 to Villa Zaita and the 39% progress of the construction of the elevated section of line 3, the Panama Metro continues to modify its master plan, which has a horizon of execution until 2045. One of his last decisions was to approve the extension of line 3 to the center of La Chorrera, specifically, to Parque Libertador.
It will be a project that would have an approximate extension of 8.4 kilometers, would have 5 stations and would be operated by 6 trains. Initially, it was contemplated to extend the route of the monorail to Costa Verde, but now, it is planned to take it to Libertador Park, from the Ciudad del Futuro station, where the first stage of line 3 will end. Phase 1 of line 3 has an extension of 25 kilometers and 12 stations, from Albrook to Ciudad del Futuro.
Ana Laura Morais, director of Planning for the Panama Metro, recently commented during the urban planning forum held by the Panamanian Association of Business Executives that it is a decision made and that currently, the fiscal space is being sought to execute the project. When asked about the issue, Metro spokespersons reported that the project has been divided into several stages.
“In the first stage, the economic feasibility for the extension to Costa Verde is analyzed and a technical and financial feasibility towards the center of La Chorrera is also analyzed,” they reported.
The first phase of the expansion of line 3 would have an extension of 3.2 kilometers and would connect the Ciudad del Futuro station with Costa Verde, the second will be built up to Plaza Italia and the expansion would culminate in Libertador Park. Metro spokespersons pointed out that at the moment there is no estimated date to start the execution of the work, since financial viability must first be established.
They also did not answer whether the project will be attached to the contract held by the Korean consortium HPH Joint Venture, responsible for building line 3, as was done with the 6-kilometer section that will pass under the Panama Canal, a tunnel that was not contemplated in the original concept of the project, but which was later included by the administration of President Laurentino Cortizo.
Originally, the line 3 monorail would use the central lanes of the fourth bridge to bypass the channel of the Panama Canal, but the Cortizo government announced in March 2020, less than a year after assuming power, that the works of an underground section of line 3 would be annexed, since at that time the future of the fourth bridge was unknown as there was no viable financing scheme.
A new blow to the drug cartels was dealt by the authorities after the seizure of 1,628 kilos of drugs located on a boat in Punta Burica, Chiriquí, and inside a container in a Pacific port that was destined for Australia.
The first seizure occurred last Saturday 70 nautical miles from Punta Burica, when with the support of an aircraft from the National Air and Naval Service (Senan) and a plane from the United States Coast Guard, they followed a Go boat. Fast with two outboard motors that transported a total of 1,588 kilos of cocaine.
After a pursuit carried out in coordination with Senan vessels, they managed to detain the vessel that was occupied by three Costa Ricans and one Nicaraguan, who were placed under the orders of the Chiriquí Province Drug Prosecutor’s Office.
According to investigations, the vessel allegedly left a Colombian port with cargo bound for Costa Rica. The anti-drug authorities consider that it is a new strategy of the drug cartels that seek to avoid Panamanian territory.
With the apprehended were found a satellite phone, air band radio and some food for the trip.
While on Sunday, during a routine inspection, another 40 kilos of cocaine were located in a container from Belgium and destined for Australia.
Last June, in operations carried out in Colón, Bocas del Toro and Coclé, the authorities seized almost three tons of drugs, most of which were hidden in containers destined for Europe and the United States.
In the first six months of the year, the authorities have managed to seize some 38 tons of drugs, mostly cocaine.
The water supply will be affected this Tuesday in several sectors of Arraiján, province of Panama Oeste, due to works that will be carried out as part of the line 3 project of the Panama Metro.
The Institute of National Aqueducts and Sewers (Idaan) indicated that personnel from the HPH-Joint Ventura consortium, responsible for building line 3, will carry out electrical discharge work, to advance the burying of the lines within the aforementioned project.
These tasks will be carried out on today Tuesday, July 11, from 6:45 am to 5:00 pm, affecting the operations of the Cáceres pumping station and the supply on, La Alameda, Meloni Street, Generation 2000, New Jerusalem, La Arboleda, Cáceres, Colinas de Cáceres, Monte Oscuro, La Estancia, La Hacienda, Los Cortijos, Altos del Lago, San Agustín, El Progreso, Alto Reparto de Cáceres, Cáceres River and surrounding areas.
It is worth mentioning that the construction of line 3 of the subway registers to date an advance of 39%.
The Ministry of Culture (MiCultura) announced that proposals for the 2023-2024 projects of the Ibero-American Performing Arts Aid Fund (Iberescena) will be received up until noon on July 26.
Iberescena was created in November 2006 with the mission of promoting the exchange, creation and professionalization of Ibero-American performing arts, stimulating its circulation, co-production, research and dissemination, details on its website.
In this sense, MiCultura recalled that the program provides economic funds to the participants and selected projects in the three lines of aid: Grants for Creation in Residence, Grants for the Co-production of Performing Arts Shows and Grants for the Programming of Festivals and scenic Spaces.
“The benefited artists and cultural managers have received financial aid to carry out their projects in stage creation residences, co-production of performing arts shows and programming for performing arts festivals,” said Renán Fernández, representative of Panama and president of the Iberescena Program .
Fernández added that participation in the program “allows the generation of networks in the Ibero-American cultural space through the perspective and internationalization of our artists, in the exchange, creation and circulation of performing arts.”
Those interested in participating can register through the Iberescena website and fill out the form corresponding to the selected helpline.
Iberescena is currently made up of the Ibero-American General Secretariat and seventeen countries that finance the program (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Uruguay).