Bosco’s Christmas dream falls flat
By David Young
Mayor Bosco’s name was ringing in the ears of residents near the Cinta Costera, on the weekend, but not in a way that was going to earn him bonus points.
{jathumbnail off}Noise from his Christmas “villages” was enveloping the neighborhood through the day and night. On Saturday a local media broadcaster had giant speakers at full blast, to the point where some living half a kilometer away claimed they could actually feel the sound waves..
Good news for hearing aid sales people yet not a soul was in sight near the source of the noise.
Was it intended to drown out the sounds of Christmas jingles burping out through newly installed speakers along the strip?
Phone calls and e-mails to offending media went unanswered.
Prime commercial sponsors, overlooked by the “Star of Digicel” atop a giant tree, seemed to benefit little from the events.
Scores of sidewalk salespeople rushed in to take advantage of the crowds but there were few buyers.
Sales at the Pepsi stands dotted from one end of the coastal strip to the other, were particularly slow.
The cancelled Christmas parade was brought back from the dead on Saturday, but with only five bands separated by long waiting periods and no floats it was barely on life support.
The who thing started so late that the final participants were marching in the dark, much like our flustered mayor who has defended some of his “mistakes” as the result of ignorance of the rules.
The mistakes range from omitting to mention his US passport when running for office, to authorizing a $4000 check to pay for his wife to fly to Taiwan. But the check was never issued, so no one was guilty.
The cobbled together parade was a shadow of previous events, initiated by Mayin Correa, a mayor with vision and carried on by Juan Carlos Navarro, who knew better than to cancel a parade that brought joy to scores of thousands.
Add that blooper to the unimaginative display of plastic figures and gingerbread cut outs that wouldn’t make it to first base in Disney World, and you have to wonder if there isn’t a better way to help people celebrate Christmas than spreading largesse among contractors with links to City Hall staff.
The near $1 million boondoggle, described as tacky by many observers, is hard to justify in a city already struggling with a massive deficit.
Has it improved the mayor’s image? Unlikely, especially with Bella Vista residents and motorists fighting the traffic snarl on Justo Arosemena, caused by the closing of the Cinta Costera Speedway as they headed for a Saturday night-out far from the Noise Fest.
We wish the mayor a more successful New Year, and hope he will benefit from lessons experienced since he took office, while he strugglesto cope with his salary, garnisheed in a judgment because of some slips of the tongue.
This is the man who wanted to move Carnival to the ocean front.
Panama deserves better.
