Majority believe Martinell wants to stay in power

In a survey conducted by the firm Unimer, 50.5% of respondents felt that President  Martinelli wants to perpetuate himself in power.  43.6% said no. 

Currently In Panama, immediate presidential reelection is not allowed. To make this possible, reforms to the Constitution would be needed The issue is not among  the constitutional reforms to be presented on Monday January 30

Martinelli has said publicly he does not want re-election, but members of the Democratic Change party (CD) -which he founded, funded and currently chairs, have insisted on this possibility. CD and Martinelli have a majority in the Assembly and are able  approve all the projects they wish, says La Prensa which commissioned the survey.

The face to face  survey was conducted face to face, from January 16 to 22 with 1,203. The margin of error of plus or minus 2.8%.

The survey follows polls which show a dramatic fall in the president’s ratings.