Amid Shouts and Protests Deputies Approve 2025 General State Budget

The Budget Committee of the National Assembly approved around midnight on Monday, October 28, amid harsh questioning by independent deputies, the first debate of the bill that dictates the general budget of the State for the fiscal year 2025.  The proposal was endorsed by 10 deputies: Ariel Vallarino, Mercedes Gálvez (alternate) of Realizing Goals; Manuel Cohen, Julio de la Guardia, of Democratic Change; Raphael Buchanan, Nestor Guardia, Raúl Pineda, of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD); Osman Gómez, of the Alliance Party; Jorge Herrera and Medín Jiménez, of the Panameñista Party. The five Vamos deputies Augusto Palacios, Betserai Richards, Jhonathan Vega, Roberto Zúñiga and Jorge González denounced that the process was illegal and that the budget hearings were cancelled at the last minute.  “It was approved with great fanfare,” said Zúñiga.  It turns out that the Commission, seeing that it had only a few days left until the end of the ordinary session period – on October 31 – decided, at around 8:55 pm, to submit the proposal to suspend the process of budget hearings and immediately begin the discussion of the first debate on the budget.

The motion to suspend the bill received 10 votes in favor and five against. The deputies of the Vamos coalition, Augusto Palacios, Betserai Richards, Jhonathan Vega, Roberto Zúñiga and Jorge González, voted against it.  Deputy Richards tried to support his vote at that moment, but Deputy Ariel Vallarino , from the ruling party Realizing Goals, who was leading the meeting at that time, did not allow him to do so after claiming that they were voting. Vallarino’s response triggered a discussion between the independent deputies who asked to respect what is established in the Internal Regulations and the deputy of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), Néstor Tin Guardia.  “The shameful ‘little room’ of the National Assembly was activated. The Government steamroller will promote the suspension of the budget hearings of UNACHI, MEDUCA, IFARHU, CSS and the National Assembly to approve a 2025 budget without its due review.  Payments are coming to contracting companies of the PRD Government. Chen Chen is still on their side and they want to save Etelvina from being held accountable,” said Deputy Richards previously.

Deputy Buchanan questioned the position of the Vamos deputies and assured that he was in favor of approving the project. Deputy Gómez expressed the same opinion. “I will defend this budget tooth and nail,” he said.  Meanwhile, Panamanian deputy Jorge Herrera complained that he was labeled a “thief” and “corrupt” and said that it was impossible to see more than 80 entities during the budget hearings in just a few days.  “I do want to approve it, because this budget does include works for Aguadulce,” he added.  On Twitter, the president of the Panameñista party, José Blandón, expressed his dismay at what happened in the commission. “I have never seen a budget approved in the first debate without completing the budget hearings,” he said.  For his part, independent deputy Roberto Zúñiga said that the decision to cancel the budget hearings deprives the country of the opportunity to learn in detail how public money is used and spent.  “This is the most important law and I do not want to take it lightly,” he said, while asking the Executive to call extraordinary sessions to continue with the budget hearings, which did not happen.  After the vote, at approximately 11:32 pm, Deputy Ariel Vallarino, who chaired the session, announced that the document would be sent to the full Assembly for discussion in a second debate. That discussion would begin on Tuesday, October 29.

Different sectors of civil society spoke out on Tuesday morning, October 29, regarding the majority decision of the Budget Committee of the National Assembly to cancel the budget hearings even though 86 entities have yet to render accounts.