Panamanian political groups, state-run organizations, and politicians have had a rough go at shaking the “corruption” label over the past few years, and it shows. People are upset, people are tired of feeling scammed, people want a change, and they’re taking action to do something about it. Corruption was the main focus (again) during the 2019 election campaign season, and will be a prime area of focus for Panama’s new president, Laurentino “Nito” Cortizo. This year, Panamanian voters showed strong support for an independent candidate who promised to separate his administration from the groups who’ve betrayed the citizens in the past. Much of the Cortizo vote, in fact, was a sort of referendum on the corruption allowed by Ricardo Martinell’s party (CD) even. The signs are there. If Panama’s government doesn’t actively push out corruption, or the perception/fear of corruption, they will not be able to reach their full potential.

Where does the perception of corruption come from?

There’s no simple answer to how or why Panamanians have a palpable distrust for politicians on the basis of corruption, but there is a precedence to justify most of it. In recent years, there have been far-reaching political and business scandals that connect people as high up as the president with unfair and illegal business practices, as well as embezzlement, and in some cases, fraud. This has caused a riff between your average citizen and the people and organizations that rule the country and its services. The riff, however, isn’t unrepairable, and of course, not all politicians or parties are corrupt. In other words, if these entities keep their word to sand firm against political corruption and scandals (especially in regards to money), they can change the country’s ire and negative perception towards the system. Will it be easy? No. Will it take time? Absolutely.

How Panama can improve and repair the corruption label

The first, and most important way Panama can improve its reputation, in this case, is by being more transparent on government business deals and finances. Locals want to see where the country’s money is being spent, why it’s being spent, and how it’s being sent, and if the government can show better results for their investments, and greater detail on how those investments are structured, it’s a great start. It will take time to rebuild the trust in public opinion needed to move away from the reputation, and many in Panama’s government are ready to do that. Another big way the government can start reversing the damage from the “corruption” reputation is to enforce consequences equally. This means enforcing the rules as they’re written, fairly between all parties. When citizens see that parties are willing to be magnanimous and unbiased about how they punish infractions, they will have more confidence in the system in general.

Outside of government, another area where the public sector can improve relations with Panama’s citizens is to reform policing. There is a certain level of distrust between the police and the average citizen, and while not as big as how citizens feel about the government, it’s still an issue. Police are actively trying to mitigate this by being more proactive with community outreach, improving the political infrastructure the police forces have to deal with, and focusing on better recruiting. All of these actions, over time, will have a massive impact on the country. The question is, will Panama’s new government step up together to make it happen.

The post How Panama is poised to evolve past post-corruption problems appeared first on POLS Attorneys.

In what seemed to be a relatively mild and scandal-free campaign season leading up to the 2019 elections, Panama has voted and chosen a new president. That president, elected by just over a third of Panama’s voters, is Nito Cortizo. While not a particularly radical change, it does mark the return of Panama’s PRD party, which many believed would happen after 5 years of Varela’s Panamenista party in power. The election comes at a time where Panama’s general public opinion of their leadership is at a low, with the main focus on Varela’s various disappointments and the overall culture of corruption within the presidency and congress. It’s because of this public sentiment that this election almost slipped away from the traditional party brokers, too. Here’s why.

Lombana flips the script on traditional party roles

One of the biggest takeaways to come out of this election is how well an independent candidate did, and how he finished the race. That candidate was Ricardo Lombana. Lombana began the campaign season with a decent amount of support, especially in Panama’s interior, where disillusionment with corrupt party politics has seemed to reach its peak in 2019. This energy kept growing as the weeks went by, and Lombana was polling right up there with the top 2-3 political parties, something few had expected. Lombana’s presence and popularity in the race essentially forced the other traditional party candidates to take him seriously, as well as address many of the reasons why voters were turning away from their parties.

On election day, Lombana dropped to what was ultimately a third-place finish, however the ripple effects of a non-party affiliated politician getting that close will be omnipresent throughout Cortizo’s campaign, as well as serve as an insight into how the next election may be influenced.

Roux make it an intriguing race down to the last minute

Another major storyline to this year’s presidential election in Panama was the margin of victory between Cortizo and the 2nd place finisher Romulo Roux. Roux, who is a member of former President Ricardo Martinelli’s Cambio Democratico (CD) party, lost by such a thin margin in some areas that he publicly asked for a recount investigation. Many members of his party even went so far as to cry foul with the reported results, claiming voting irregularities and potential fraud. This fervor will most likely die down as we get further away from the election, and closer to the administration change, but it’s worth keeping an eye on.

Keep in mind, Roux is a Martinelli supporter, and Martinelli still has a lot of strong support from both his party and from many in the Panamanian public. This will loom over Cortizo’s new administration, especially if he doesn’t immediately improve a lot of the corruption that Panama has been plagued with in recent years, and change the perceived inaction of Varela, Panama’s previous president.

Nito Cortizo has a long, and potentially arduous road ahead of him, which is nothing new for Panama, but is still particularly important now due to their status with China and the US. If Cortizo can right the proverbial ship of what many perceive to be a failure of the Varela administration, it should bode well for Panama. In this case, gaining back the public’s trust will be job #1, because, without that, progress will essentially be impossible.

The post Cortizo Wins Highly Contested Panama Presidential Election appeared first on POLS Attorneys.