OPINION: Politics hijacked by thugs and crooks

Starting today, Panamanians celebrate the national holidays. Our separation from Colombia marked a milestone, since then we have taken the reins of our destiny as a State and a nation. After more than 100 years of republican life, we must ask ourselves where we are going, what kind of democracy we want, and what we are as a society and as citizens. We should have learned from our failures, but we seem doomed to walk in circles, making the same mistakes. Corruption is suffocating and has permeated even our homes, something that will eventually lead many to commit acts of corruption, making our society vulnerable and tolerant to this rot. Our future is now uncertain, as politics is hijacked by thugs and crooks who disfigure our identity as citizens and country. The growing dependence of Panamanians on clientelism, created and cultivated by white-collar criminals entrenched in the Government, puts the future at serious risk, as the country is filled with drones instead of productive people. Let us reflect on how to separate ourselves from corrupt Panama to flourish as the honest and upright Panama – LA PRENSA, Nov. 3.