Court oks audit of lawmakers staff pay

The pugnacious president of Panama’s National Assembly has partially  lost the latest round in her ongoing battle with the country’s Comptroller General with the Supreme  Court  referee  ruling that the Comptroller may carry on  for nowm the  forensic audit of  form 080 of the National Assembly (AN), which contains the contracts of the staff that work with lawmakers.

Although the plenary of the Supreme Court – with the presentation of the magistrate Cecilio Cedalise- admitted the protection of constitutional guarantees that she presented against the resolution of the Comptroller’s Office that ordered the audit, it agreed to the Comptroller’s request for “provisional suspension” of the same,

The ruling dated May 28, admits the amparo presented by lawyer Carlos Carrillo, on behalf of Ábrego, the same day as officials of the  Comptroller’s Forensic Investigation and Auditing team arrived at the Assembly to start the audit of form 080.

That happened On  May 16. Ábrego refused to receive a resolution of the  Comptroller and the auditors were forced to retire.

In her defense, Abrego alleges that the comptroller did not notify her in advance that he was coming and for that reason violated due process.

After that action, the comptroller Federico Humbert filed a criminal complaint against Abrego for opposing the execution of the forensic audit.

Additionally, the Comptroller ordered on May 24 suspension of payment to personnel of 10 deputies that presented the form, for not providing “any support to show that those who were paid have provided some service to the State “.

In a letter addressed to the deputy Ábrego, the Comptroller Humbert informed her that the measure was adopted, in the concomitant evaluation of form 080m “a group of officials that did not present any support that proved any service to the State had been made”.

Several of the deputies, whose staff payments were suspended, have gone to the human resources department of the Legislature to update information regarding the form reports La Prensa.