Varela gets wake up call on Odebrecht contracts

THE influential Independent Movement (Movin) which has been a prominent critic of the Martinelli administration, and something of a cheer leader for the present regime, has called for President Juan Carlos Varela and his government show a greater commitment to institutions.

“In the last five years, Panamanians have gotten a firsthand view of an economy operated without institutionalization,” the group said. “It is for this reason that, in the past election a government was elected with a clear mandate from the Panamanian people to operate with transparency and the strengthening of institutions.”
Movin questioned the awarding of the $500 million contract to revitalize Colón to the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht, which is currently being investigated for corruption over the $6 billion in contracts awarded to it during the administrations of Martín Torrijos (2004-2009) and Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014).
It also questioned the awarding of the contract for Line 2 of the Metro to the company. That contract is worth about $2 billion.
“This increases the state dependence on a single contractor, which does not promote competition, thus affecting the outcome of future public procurement,” it said.
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