Five of Seven carnival contracts canceled

With only three days remaining to the start of carnival five of seven known contracts signed by the Panama Tourism Authority (ATP) for services to companies with no experience contracted directly for $1.5 million. Of that amount, some $790,000 would be paid to the same economic group.

 An email issued by the Directorate of Exceptional Procurement Procedures (Dipec) to the ATP – on February 7 – was made public on February 10, one day after it was revealed that Servicios Integrales Ancor was favored with a contract directly to promote the carnival on Instagram and radio spots for $210,000, despite being suspended in the Public Registry.

That same day, Dipec decided to deny the contracting of Servicios Integrales Ancor, as well as the contracts with Imperio Plus, Multi Servicios G & AP, Niko’s Café, and Presol, SA, due to breaches. In turn, the ATP administrator, Iván Eskildsen, confirmed that the delivery of all the documentation required for these contracts was not met, as Dipec warned, but that they would correct it in the coming days.

In an interview with Telemetro Reporta, Eskildsen justified the hiring of Servicios Integrales Ancor by indicating that it is empowered to contract with the State due to its notice of operation, issued last January, downplaying its suspension in the Public Registry.

The companies Grima Urban Inc. and Factory, Corp. are the other two companies whose contracts have not been located in PanamaCompra . However, together they will receive more than $500,000. Its dignitaries are divided into three companies that were awarded direct contracts with the ATP for the carnivas.

Grima Urban Inc., established during the pandemic, is made up of Edgar Pozo (president), René Araúz (secretary), and Luis Pozo (treasurer). Its services are mainly focused on representing artists and promoting and organizing events. its contract with the ATP is about $285,000.

These same people appear in Factory, Corp., subscribing under the name “Guetto Music International, Inc.”, in June 2010. Three months later, it was changed to its current name. This company was awarded a $294,000 contract. The jobs that both companies will offer are unknown, as, their contracts have not been disclosed.