Martinelli out of control Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal has joined with local civil rights activists in condemning growing authoritarianism in Panama and the packing of the Supreme Court with Martinelli supporters.

It even points out that the current president of the Supreme Court was put in charge of newspaper censorship during the Noriega regime.
The report gives a boost to the multiple groups set to march on the National Assembly on June 18.
The article reads:
About 15 thousand vessels, carrying 5% of maritime cargo around the world pass through the Panama Canal. each year. However, when a third set of locks able to receive larger vessels is completed in 2014, analysts expect annual freight volume will double. This will ensure that in the XXI century, "the passage between the oceans," as historian David McCullough called it, becomes an even more significant international trade route.
The economic importance of the legendary passage is but one reason why the Republic of Panama is stable and free of the problems of the Western Hemisphere. That, in turn, is a good reason to pay attention to a growing chorus of cautions that Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli, center right, is moving the country toward authoritarianism: "He is building public works, but tearing down the institutions "said Aurelio Barria, a Panamanian businessman and leader of Civil Crusade, a nonpartisan movement famous for its defense of democracy during the dictatorship of General Manuel Noriega.
As if trying to validate Barria’s view, Martinelli went ahead on Thursday June 14 with his plan to fill the Supreme Court with his supporters by appointing three new justices to take the number of judges from nine to twelve members.
The opposition parties pledged to fight against the measure.
James Madison wrote that "in the formulation of a government that will be administered by men over men the great difficulty lies in this: one must first enable the government to control the governed, and then oblige it to control itself".
The problem is that Martinelli of Panama is out of control. When the supermarket magnate was sworn in as president on July 1, 2009, supporters of free markets in the region were celebrating. Until then, it looked like imitators of Venezuela's Hugo Chavez were emerging everywhere. Martinelli's victory in Panama suggested that democratic capitalism could make a comeback.
However, the honeymoon did not last. Erosion of pluralism under the government of Panama Martinelli appears to have originated in the Legislative Assembly of Panama, a unicameral body of 71 seats.

In the last election, his party, Democratic Change (CD) won only 13 seats. But since then, Martinelli has persuaded 23 other MPs to join his party or to vote with him in a coalition, giving it the simple majority needed to pass legislation and confirm judges even after the old supporters become adversaries.
It is not entirely clear how Martinelli won all those politicians. But it is important to remember that the Panamanian constitution was written during the military dictatorship and, as such, centralizes a lot of power in the executive. Thus, Martinelli has enormous discretion in the allocation of funds to certain congressional districts and I think he has taken advantage of it. Like Chavez in Venezuela, who also has a majority in a unicameral National Assembly, the legislative advantage has allowed Martinelli to rule without control, despite strong protests from the independent press. And, like Chavez, Martinelli understands the power of the public purse. His detractors argue that it is corrupt. However, it is difficult to know.
The concern is that too often Martinelli's close buddies have been appointed to positions that should be carried out by politically independent professionals.
An example is the post of comptroller general, occupied by a former member of Martinelli’s party and ex auditor of one of his companies, which leaves people wondering if anyone  is actually watching the box.
He also seems to prefer contracts without tender for the infrastructure that he is handling. This has raised suspicions about the misuse of public funds.
Meanwhile, Martinelli is going for more. Since 1997, revenues from privatization have been cordoned off to a special fund with the stipulation that only the interest of principal could be spent. However, this government is creating a new vehicle for future privatization revenues that  will have no such restrictions. Martinelli has announced that he will appoint all of its board of directors. Now the president is suggesting that he would like another term. The reelection is not allowed under the Constitution and the change would require the cooperation of the Supreme Court.
Martinelli has named four of the judges of the superior court (one of them, now chief justice, managed the censorship of the press during the Noriega dictatorship). A fifth is a reliable ally. If we add the three new seats he advocated and then filled, we see that two thirds of the court are his. Even if, as critics contend, Martinelli was a power-hungry leader, some might be tempted to tolerate because is not lef.. Importantly, not threatening property rights. But that's not much consolation. Once the institutional checks and balances defending society against dangerous demagogues are destroyed, the door remains closed to candidates from across the political spectrum. Just ask the Venezuelans. .