Ghost convention center keeps hotels waiting
THE AMADOR Convention Center touted as a magnet to attract conventions to Panama and helped fuel the scramble to build more hotels in the capital is another Martinelli era “Mission Unaccomplished”, and joins a growing list of highly promoted “achievements” that were never realized, leaving the present administration to pick up the pieces.
Among them are Hospital City, a super highway to Ariajan, and an airport in Colon that has yet to see a commercial passenger pass through its empty halls. or a cargo plane land.
What was achieved, was the boldest robbery of the public purse in the history of Panama. But the system seems paralyzed in bringing the lead malefactors to justice, raising suspicions in some quarters of hidden skeletons in the cupboards of some of those who now stride the stage once dominated by the “businessman” who guaranteed himself the lead role by inventing, funding, and heading a party with a fine sounding name including “Change” that created the myth of “in the shoes of the people.”
By the time the country woke up the Martinelli inner circle were wearing Guccis and the “people” were barefooted.
Almost 10 months have passed since work halted on the construction of the Convention Center and questions remain over the contract of almost $200 million granted to the company HPC-Contrata-P&V.
There was a possibility that the state would void the contract and call for a new tender, but the proposal was ruled out because it would further delay the project that was supposed to be finished at the end of 2014.
The delays have added to the concerns of hotel operators who says the project is desperately needed to host the large events that will generate business for the overbuilt industry.
The Panama Tourism Authority (ATP), the entity that was in charge of the project, now expects to transfer the contract to a new entity in the next 15 days.
ATP Administrator Gustavo Him said that the amount of the contract, $193.7 million, will not be altered. The new contractor will have to finish the project with the remaining funds and will have to assume the work minus the $46 million so far disbursed,
That nettle was not grasped by two bidders, Brazilian company Odebrecht, which has already received more than $8 billion in Panama government contracts and Mexican company ICA. Both said they needed more funds. The money stolen via The National Assitance program, (PAN) could have paid for a second center.
