Waked could save Estrella, Siglo by selling his shares

THE FATE of La Estrella Panama’s oldest newspaper, and its stablemate El Siglo is in the hands of their owner Abdul Waked according to the United States Ambassador to Panama, John Feeley.

The group’s,  temporary  operating license expires on Jan 5 .

The papers” operations  have been hampered since May 5, When Waked was included on the  Clinton list for alleged  activities related to money laundering and drug trafficking.

Feeley says  the  controlling company  (Gese) could normalize its relations with his country,if Waked, the principal shareholder  sells his stake.

The United States prohibits its citizens and businesses from maintaining commercial and financial transactions  with entities on the list.

“If he [Waked] does not own more than 51% of the newspaper’s stock, it means that Americans can trade with it, “said Feeley on Friday, December 16, during  a visit delivering  toys at the Hospital del Nino.

“This is a rather difficult issue, as much has been said about the regulations of my government’s  Office of  Foreign Asset Control (OFAC).

‘’I do not want to say that we do not feel a great pain over the  challenge that still faces  the 250 employees of a large newspaper, “he said.

The United States Treasury through OFAC, issued a license that allows Gese to maintain commercial and financial relations with Americans.  until January 5, 2017.

The Minister of Economy and Finance, Dulcidio De La Guardia, has requested an extension of the license, for one year.