News
Wednesday 7th February 2024.
February 6, 2024
The Minera Panamá company reported that this Tuesday, February 6, a coastal vessel transporting supplies necessary for the mining project docked at the port of Punta Rincón, ensuring that they are required to continue with the maintenance phase.
The information only indicates that the vessel unloaded parts and spare parts, but does not specify what the supplies would be used for.
Last week, the company indicated that during the next few days a series of activities could be carried out that would be part of the Preservation and Safe Management (PSG) plan, which would be implemented during the definitive closure of the project located in a concession of 13 thousand hectares in the districts of Donoso and Omar Torrijos in the province of Colón.
The company assures that it must continue operating the port of Punta Rincón to receive supplies and ship materials that will not be used in the mine.
“Cobre Panamá needs to continue supplying the site with various key inputs for the PGS phase, such as fuel and others, through the international port of Punta Rincón. This involves the arrival of ships at port facilities. Recycling of materials such as steel must be loaded on ships during the next PGS period, after the suspension of operations,” the company detailed.
Less than three months before the elections, voters have not decided who to give their vote to. Those who do not know which presidential candidate to choose add up to 17%, and those who will not vote for any, 32%, for a total of 49% of the people surveyed.
Zulay Rodríguez , a PRD activist who ran as a presidential candidate through free nomination, currently leads the electorate’s sympathies, as she accumulates 14% of the preferences at the national level.
In second place are tied – each with 9% of the preferences – Ricardo Lombana (Movimiento Otro Camino) and Martín Torrijos (Partido Popular), who recently resigned from the PRD.
Given that at the time of this survey, a decision from the Supreme Court of Justice was pending that would determine the political fate of the candidate Ricardo Martinelli (Realising Goals), a mock voting was carried out with two different scenarios – and with ballots that were They differed in one detail: one contained the candidacy of Ricardo Martinelli and the other with that of his substitute, José Raúl Mulino , in case the Supreme Court’s decision prevented Martinelli from maintaining his presidential candidacy.
Consequently, the mock voting with Martinelli’s ballot has been discarded, precisely due to the constitutional mandate that prevents this candidate from being elected. Furthermore, during the time that the pollsters were in the field, the decision of the Court became known, which did not admit an appeal filed by the former president’s lawyers in the New Business case, in which Martinelli was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison.
In fourth place in the preferences of the surveyed electorate is Rómulo Roux (Cambio Democrático y Panameñista), with 8%, followed by Martinelli’s substitute candidate, José Raúl Mulino (Realizing Goals and Alliance), with 6% of the preferences. .
Further back, in sixth place, with 4% of respondents’ preferences, is the official candidate José Gabriel Carrizo (PRD and Molirena). And finally, each with 1% of the preferences, are the free-nomination candidates Maribel Gordón and Melitón Arrocha (who is also nominated by the Pais party).
How long will it take the Electoral Tribunal (TE) to resolve the issue of Ricardo Martinelli ? Judge Alfredo Juncá , president of the TE, does not risk talking about a specific date. However, he assures that what he can guarantee is that the electoral jurisdiction is not like the ordinary one. This one is faster. “Ordinary justice takes much more time. In the electoral jurisdiction there are resources that do not exist. There are measures that are not allowed, for example, warranty protections are not allowed. Neither do the warnings of unconstitutionality, “he explained, while reporting that what is appropriate are the demands of unconstitutionality, but he warned that” that does not stop the process.
Regarding the ballot for May 5 , Juncá reiterated that the process in electoral justice is “quite fast.” “What I do assure you is that if he is disqualified , he should not appear on the ballot , then we must give space to the electoral justice system to do his job. “Once the conditions are determined and the decision is made, then we will look at the issue of the ballot,” he added.
Former deputy Osman Gómez was captured in the province of Chiriquí, this Tuesday, February 6, as reported by the National Border Service (Senafront) to this medium.
Gómez, candidate for deputy for circuit 4-2 (Chiriquí) for the Alianza party, has pending accounts with the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office in Veraguas, for the alleged commission of embezzlement crimes.
In 2017, Gómez was arrested at the National Police headquarters in the city of David, Chiriquí province, for carrying a firearm without a permit. In 2012, during the government of Ricardo Martinelli, he left the Panameñista Party and joined the Nationalist Republican Liberal Movement (Molirena).
He consulted José Muñoz Molina, president of the Alianza Party, however, he said he had little information about what happened. “I only know what has come out on social media, but I have not communicated with him,” he said.
Judicial sources reported that yesterday he was due to have a guarantee hearing, after the former deputy’s defense appealed for arrest.
The identification data of Panamanian citizens, naturalized or permanent residents that rest in the Electoral Tribunal could be integrated into the tax registry of taxpayers.
This is one of the proposals of the General Directorate of Revenue (DGI) to streamline the tax registration process of natural persons, so that once citizens reach the age of majority, they are automatically integrated with the identity number into the tax organization. .
This was announced by Publio de Gracia, in a conference given to auditors and representatives of the Nexia firm in Panama, pointing out that just as the ID card is obtained and that number is for the entire road, the process is simplified and can be integrated with the tax record.
“The idea is to have greater interoperability and that we can take advantage of the information already uploaded in the civil registry for natural persons, for example in the Electoral Court, and make the lives of people in the taxpayer registry easier,” De Gracia said. clarifying that there is nothing concrete yet, but he advanced it in a conversation with Judge Alfredo Juncá Wendehake, about some ideas that the tax agency has.
The director of the DGI explained to La Prensa that there are countries where it is mandatory that when people reach the age of majority, in addition to updating their identity card, at the same time that data is included in the taxpayer registry, even if they are not still generating resources to pay taxes.
At least 11 alleged fraudsters were arrested in the early hours of this Tuesday, February 6, 2024 as part of the development of Operation Farsa 2. Among those detained is a public servant.
These are eight women and three men located through judicial proceedings carried out in the provinces of Chiriquí, Panama and Panamá Oeste. The crime for which they are being investigated is against economic assets in the form of fraud, as reported.
According to what is known from the investigations, these people offered prizes to victims who filed the corresponding complaints. Likewise, the alleged scammers claimed to have sick relatives, requesting deposits and bank transfers.
Operation Farsa 2 was carried out by personnel from the Fifth Section of Crimes against Economic Assets of the Metropolitan area of the Public Ministry, in conjunction with the National Police. Investigations into this case originated in 2022.
The recent restrictions in the Panama Canal due to the water crisis are triggering significant changes in global trade and in the maritime routes of shipping companies.
With a 33% reduction in transits, equivalent to 100 million tons of cargo, which has generated a 5% increase in transportation costs, the economic impact is undeniable. These figures reveal the urgency of adapting to new routes and logistics strategies to maintain efficiency in supply chains.
This is indicated by an analysis carried out by the consulting firm Mckinsey & Company that warns about the increase in maritime transport costs and the increase in merchandise delivery times and a change in routes in the global supply chain.
The report states that the reduction in the number of transits that has gone from 36 ships a day to 24 ships translates into 100 million tons of cargo no longer passing through the route, which is equivalent to 35% of what transited. through the interoceanic route in fiscal year 2022.
Mckinsey, which analyzes various scenarios according to the patterns of international maritime trade, indicates that Latin America and the east coast of the United States especially depend on the Canal for the supply of merchandise, raw materials and fuel such as natural gas and oil.
“A major trade route connecting North Asia, the East Coast and the Gulf Coast of the United States passes through the Panama Canal. In total, approximately 14% of maritime trade to and from the United States sails through the Canal,” indicates the consulting firm.
In turn, the road represents 2,544 million dollars in contributions to the Panamanian State, according to the report at the end of fiscal year 2023.
The Mckinsey report indicates that the limitations imposed by the drought in the Channel are leading to a new configuration of global maritime routes, with the aggravation of greater costs and time.
A ship traveling from Asia to the Caribbean that would normally cross through the Panama Canal could instead go west around the Cape of Good Hope, at the southern tip of Africa. In this scenario, what would take 26 days passing through the Canal would take 39 days going around Africa.