Martinelli fuming over move-out payments story

PRESIDENT Ricardo Martinelli Tweeted on Tuesday, October 22, that he is “fuming” over a published story about residents of a building in Casco Viejo, owned by a private developer, Viejo being paid by the government  to move out.

Panama’s Secretary of State Communication issued a statement explaining why building 3-36 in San Felipe is uninhabitable.

The situation has resulted in the government paying each family $150 monthly to leave the structure.
The reaction came after La Prensa published an investigation about the payments, which were arranged by the Ministry of Housing. The building was by Ricamar, S.A., a company linked to President Ricardo Martinelli.
It often takes years for developers in San Felipe to move families out of old buildings where they pay small rents, but after the buildings are renovated they become much sought after high end residential properties, with relatively small apartments often costing hundreds of thousands of dollars
Secretary of State Communication Luis Eduardo Camacho said that the administration of Ricardo Martinelli is not interested in who the owners of condemned buildings are.
"The government is interested in the safety of those who inhabit these condemned buildings," he said.
The building's ownership was transferred on Jan. 19, 2010, to the construction company Sea North, whose president, Ulises Dioger González, and treasurer, Roberto Luzcando Ruiz, are both are employees of Ricamar.
According to Camacho, "the article maliciously presented economic aid provided by the ministry to the residents of the building as it does to about 431 families across the country."
He said the program is designed to aid families living in dangerous circumstances.
Martinelli posted on his Twitter account that he is "fuming" over the story and that the article lacks objectivity and was written "because they hate me."