Transparency International rejects Panama electoral “reforms”

The Panamanian Chapter of Transparency International (TI) has weighed in on the rejection of the electoral reforms approved “via early morning” on October 15 in the National Assembly.

“For this reason, we call for citizen mobilization to demand our right to fair elections, where the vote is counted fairly and the candidates -of parties or independents, men or women- run with equal conditions,” the foundation said in a statement. Posted Monday, October 18.

TI pointed out that they reject “the opportunism of the deputies of political parties and their betrayal” of the citizen consensus of the National Electoral Reform Commission (CNRE), which is essential and legitimate in any participatory democracy.

It said that what was approved by the Assembly reduces justice, accountability, and transparency.

TI  mentioned the following aspects of the document approved by the deputies: persistence of the electoral jurisdiction to generate impunity, inequity in electoral subsidies between parties and independents, increase in private financing caps for electoral campaigns, persistence of double nomination, formulas for counting votes in multi-member circuits, reduction in the years of statute of limitations for electoral crimes, amnesty for those who do not submit reports of campaign income and expenditures, and escape mechanism to evade compliance with the parity formula.

“These reforms would generate such inequity and injustice that they would eliminate the legitimacy of whoever is elected under them,” the organization added.