Panama President Mulino Reiterates that the Efforts of the Security Forces are Useless ‘If the Judiciary Does Not Keep Pace’

The President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino, once again questioned the actions of judges in the face of the crime plaguing the country, expressing that the efforts of the Executive and the Security forces are useless if the Judicial Branch does not keep pace.  The president’s statements come after National Police Lieutenant José Isaza Melo was killed this Friday in Caimitillo during an armed attack initially directed against a man who was serving a community service sentence ordered by a judge.  In a statement from the Presidency, it is mentioned that Mulino does not rule out a 2026 with greater rigor and a tougher hand against crime.  “Make no mistake, this is coming. There are outlaws like the one yesterday who took the life of a police officer……

My respect goes out to those families who contribute heroes to the country and are sometimes very misunderstood. It’s useless for the Executive branch to make its efforts through the security forces if the Judiciary doesn’t keep pace,” the president emphasized during a tour of the province of Chiriquí.  The president stated that new laws are not needed, but rather to comply with existing ones and stop creating a system of guarantees, as if we were talking about minor offenses.  “What our security agencies do is useless if the judicial branch doesn’t do its part,” he stressed.  On numerous occasions, Mulino has expressed his disagreement with the decisions made by judges of guarantees, in which precautionary measures other than provisional detention are granted in processes for serious crimes.