Panama’s reputation seriously tarnished

The conviction of the Martinelli Linares brothers in the United States for the Odebrecht case has put the serious problem of corruption in Panama on the spot. The country’s reputation has been seriously tarnished not only by this case, but also by the growing impunity that reigns in the country. The designated ambassador of the United States in Panama, Mari Carmen Aponte, expressed it last week in the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, where she is examining her nomination. “Corruption – she warned – is a serious challenge in Panama and has a corrosive effect on many layers of the State.” She is not the only one who thinks this way. In the trial of the Martinelli brothers, the prosecution referred to corruption in Panama: “No one can be above the law, at least in the United States. They [the sons of former President Martinelli] believed that here in the United States they could do the same as in Panama, especially when their father was president”… And he stressed that “the sentence [of the Panamanian defendants] should be an example for officials of the Panama who commit this crime and who use the US financial system…”. It’s a pity that our officials only know how to read the balance of their scandalous bank accounts.The conviction of the Martinelli Linares brothers in the United States for the Odebrecht case has put the serious problem of corruption in Panama on the spot. The country’s reputation has been seriously tarnished not only by this case but also by the growing impunity that reigns in the country. The designated ambassador of the United States in Panama, Mari Carmen Aponte, expressed it last week in the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, where she is examining her nomination. “Corruption – she warned – is a serious challenge in Panama and has a corrosive effect on many layers of the State.”

 She is not the only one who thinks this way. In the trial of the Martinelli brothers, the prosecution referred to corruption in Panama: “No one can be above the law, at least in the United States. They [the sons of former President Martinelli] believed that here in the United States they could do the same as in Panama, especially when their father was president”… And he stressed that “the sentence [of the Panamanian defendants] should be an example for officials of Panama who commit this crime and who use the US financial system…”. It’s a pity that our officials only know how to read the balance of their scandalous bank accounts. – LA PRENSA, May 24.