High spending Ombudsperson not for sacrifice

THE TORTUOUS battle over the future of Ombudsperson Patria Portugal continues. In spite of multiple calls for her resignation and an apperance before the National Assembly, she is still in office.

CD deputy Dalia Bernal said Sunday, July 14,  that the National Assembly called her to the legislative chamber to answer questions, not to judge her.

"It is not our responsibility to judge, only to received reports from ministers and agency heads," Bernal said. "We're not going to sacrifice anyone."
Bernal said that this week the Assembly will create a subcommittee that will analyze the information provided by Portugal last week about questionable spending practices in her agency.
Meanwhile, Panameñista Deputy José Luis Varela said Portugal does not have the moral authority to continue in office due to her spending habits.
According to the deputy, the current administration has abused the hiring of consultants. He said that the CD leadership thought Portugal would simply resign, and has formed the commission with the aim of removing her.
 Human rights organizations have harshly questioned the role of Ombudsman Patria Portugal over the many scandals she has been involved in since taking office.
The groups have also accused her office of failing to address the various problems that affect the daily lives of Panamanians.
The most prevalent scandal involves the $250,000 no-bid contract awarded to a politically-connected company to redesign the agency's web site. Other issues involve the purchase of a $3,000 sofa and $150 pens.
The decision to relocate the office, where the agency pays annual rent of $634,809, has also been questioned.
The most recent scandal involves the award of a $200,000 contract to the firm Avant to train staff in customer service. This company has ties to Imaginarium Studio, the firm that re-designed the web sit