Mayor again a no-show at corruption investigation … Christmas Village rolls on

 For the second time in a week, Panama’s mayor Bosco Vallarino, was a no-show at an investigation into alleged embezzlement.

Vallarino was to have met with  the Second Anti-Corruption Prosecutor, on Friday,  but his lawyer, Cosme Moreno was reported to be sick.
 The investigation has been moved to Wednesday December 9.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the issuing of a $4,000 check to his wife Annabel in August for a trip to Taiwan, only weeks after he took office.
The investigation was initiated after the Comptroller General rejected the check authorized by Vallarino because his wife was not a public servant.
Meanwhile, the mayor’s controversial Christmas Village on the Cinta Costera (Coastal Strip) is underway.
No-bid-contracts, including some to vendors with family or business connections inside city hall, have been the subject of special audits.