Following Citizen Complaints of Alleged Corruption, the Comptroller’s Office Orders Forensic Audits of Pandeportes
The National Directorate of Forensic Auditing begins the auditing of addenda and payments.
The Instituto Panameño de Deportes (Pandeportes) contract signed by director Miguel Ángel Ordóñez with the Nueve Canchas Coclé consortium—represented by his sister-in-law Ximena Arias Neira—has triggered a forensic audit by the Contraloría General de la República following investigative reports and public scrutiny.
Contract Background and Details
- Original Value: Signed for approximately $2.8 million in January 2018 with a 12-month execution period.
- Cost Increase: Successive modifications pushed the total cost to nearly $3.9 million, excluding additional potential contractual equilibrium claims.
- Project Scope: Design and construction of nine sports facilities across Olá, Natá, and La Pintada in Coclé Province.
- Current Status: Remaining unliquidated and unfinished after eight years.
Investigation and Response
- Audit Order: The Contraloría General de la República ordered an official forensic audit into the multi-million dollar project.
- Conflict of Interest Scrutiny: Public and journalistic focus centers on the familial link between the Pandeportes director and the consortium’s legal representative.
The Comptroller General of the Republic ordered the formal opening of multiple forensic audits on infrastructure contracts executed by the Panamanian Institute of Sports (Pandeportes). In an institutional statement, the oversight body warned that the complexity of the allegations makes a specialized and independent investigation essential to determine whether the resources were managed under the principles of transparency and adherence to the law.
Eight Years, Four Addenda and a Contract Linked to Ordóñez’s Sister-In-Law: Pandeportes
Miguel Ángel Ordóñez pictured above, director of Pandeportes, is facing scrutiny over a contract that will be subject to a forensic audit by the Comptroller General’s Office and that benefits a consortium legally represented by his sister-in-law, Ximena Arias Neira. The project was supposed to be completed in 12 months, but it remains unfinished. He signed a fourth addendum to a multi-million dollar contract that has been pending for 8 years, benefiting the Nueve Canchas Coclé consortium, whose legal representative is Ximena Arias Neira, his sister-in-law.
