Illegal recordings a return to Noriega era former police chief

ILLEGAL RECORDINGS of government opposition members telephone calls is like the Noriega era says a former Panama police chief.

Jaime Abad said Sunday, June 23, on RPC TV, that it is likely that the government was responsible for the recordings of calls between members of the opposition.

The taps that had been done needed sophisticated equipment, acess to companies and  connecting satellite dishes he said.

Abad said that President Ricardo Martinelli was the first one to mention the recordings. "When the hen crows, there is the egg," he said, saying Martinelli's use of the social network Twitter to promote the existence of the recordings was evidence that he had prior knowledge of them.

The former police officials said all governments do recordings, but they should be for specific issues, such as stopping criminal activities. It should not be done to violate the right to privacy of citizens.
"This surveillance is necessary, but what has happened is like the Noriega era," he said. 
He added that the attitude of the government leads him to believe that there are more recordings."To say they are friendly fire is a  curiosity and an attitude of arrogance ensuring  more recordings"