Impunity taking toll on Panama internationally

For more than a decade, Panama has experienced a maelstrom of scandals related to corruption and lack of transparency.

During the last 15 months, new cases have been added to that list, with the aggravation that they have occurred in the middle of an unprecedented health crisis says The Panama Chamber of Commerce, industry, and Agriculture (CCIAP) in its Sunday newsletter.

The latest events cause indignation and anger because they are playing with the population, its health, and its future. We are sailing down a dark and dangerous channel and a turn of the rudder is urgent.

We live in a democratic system; however, going to the polls every five years is not enough. For true democracy to work, there must be a real rule of law that provides security to its citizens; as well as a citizenry that in all its roles – entrepreneurs, workers, public employees, to name a few – respects the laws and is committed to values such as honesty and resilience.

As a society, we are obliged to openly condemn those who tarnish the reputations of those who act the right way. Enough of being a permissive society that does not morally punish the corrupt. They are the scum and as such must be cornered in the darkness of contempt.

The Chamber activates its Ethics Committee when a member company engages in unethical practices or has been convicted of illegal acts. In case the ruling expresses guilt, the company is expelled from the union.

We have already done it in the past and we will do it again, but this sanctioning mechanism depends, in turn, on a system of administration of justice that is bogged down and absent.

The CCIAP has affirmed on innumerable occasions – today we are putting it back on the table – that it is necessary to rescue Panamanian justice. Honest citizens feel unprotected against the cynicism of the corrupt. Impunity is taking its toll on us nationally and internationally.