News
Tuesday 12th October 2021.
October 12, 2021
The Ministry of Health (MInsa) reported, this Monday, that in the last 24 hours 108 new infections and 4 deaths were reported due to Covid-19. With these new figures, the cumulative total of cases increased to 469,190 and that of deaths to 7,271. To detect the new cases, 3,172 tests were applied, which yielded a positivity of 3.4%. The Minsa report also indicates that there are 2,572 active cases and 459,347 recovered patients. In home isolation, 2,358 people are reported, of which 2,253 are at home and 105 in hospital hotels. There are 214 hospitalized patients and 170 of them are in the ward and 44 are in the intensive care unit.
The Cabinet Council authorized the Minister of Health, Luis Francisco Sucre, to sign on behalf of the country a fourth amendment to the manufacturing and supply contract with the company Pfizer Free Zone Panama, for an amount of $ 45 million 15 thousand 750, for the acquisition an additional 3 million 50 thousand doses of vaccines against the Covid-19 by the year 2022 and continue with the vaccination process of the population. The authorization was given through Cabinet Resolution No. 108 of October 6, 2021, which specifies that this amendment must be endorsed by the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic, in accordance with the prevailing norms and practices for this type of transactions.
Ricardo Martinelli starred in a brawl with former deputy José Luis “Popi” Varela , one of the four witnesses that the Public Ministry has presented so far, in the trial that follows the former president for the unauthorized interceptions that took place in the last two years of his mandate (2012-2014). “He threw a punch and we hit each other,” Varela acknowledged to journalists. When Martinelli saw that the witness was talking to the media, he wanted to interrupt the interview, but the security agents guarding the First Judicial District of Panama prevented him.
The Attorney General’s Office asked the Court of Accounts to bring six people to trial for a possible patrimonial injury to the State, for an amount of more than 91 thousand dollars, to the detriment of the Ministry of Health (Minsa). Among those linked is a former Minister of Health and the former head of human resources of the Ministry of Health, said the Attorney General’s Office, an office under the charge of Waleska Hormechea .
In presenting a report on the position of the Electoral Tribunal (TE) regarding the electoral reforms approved in the first debate in the National Assembly, Judge Heriberto Araúz highlighted that progress has been made. He indicated that the way to reach consensus on sensitive issues will continue to be sought, starting this week when the discussion begins in the second debate. “Our job as a court is to continue talking with the deputies in the second and third debates about the need and convenience of improving our electoral democracy, particularly in those more sensitive issues, which are identified,” said Araúz, presiding magistrate of the TE.
Looking ahead, the administration of the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) is working on the roadmap to achieve its carbon neutrality goal by 2030. It is proposed to achieve this through the change of equipment, use of renewable energy sources and digitization. The administration projects an investment plan in modernization and technology, with a toll pricing strategy that promotes efficiency and low carbon emissions from vessels that transit the waterway.