{"id":27034,"date":"2019-09-16T14:50:28","date_gmt":"2019-09-16T19:50:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/panamaadvisoryinternationalgroup.com\/blog\/?p=27034"},"modified":"2019-09-17T10:05:02","modified_gmt":"2019-09-17T15:05:02","slug":"can-panamas-new-president-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/panamaadvisoryinternationalgroup.com\/blog\/can-panamas-new-president-country\/","title":{"rendered":"What Can Panama\u2019s New President Do for His Country?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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After a decade led by two globalist and establishment presidents, Ricardo Martinelli and Juan Carlos Varela,\u00a0Panama has a new leader<\/a>\u00a0who brings a nationalist flare to political discourse. Despite a career in business and politics, President Laurentino \u201cNito\u201d Cortizo has never seen eye to eye with Panama City elites.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Cortizo was propelled to the presidency despite, or because of, his status as a critic of previous governments. For instance, in 2006, Cortizo\u00a0resigned<\/a>\u00a0from his position as minister of agriculture to protest then-President Martin Torrijos\u2019 push for a free trade agreement with the United States. True to form, earlier this year, Cortizo decided to take on\u00a0Panama\u2019s two main parties<\/a>, the Paname\u00f1ista Party and Democratic Change (CD), campaigning with the Revolutionary Democratic Party (PRD) on restarting country\u2019s agricultural industry and regulating unchecked imports currently stifling local producers.<\/p>\n

Turning Point<\/strong><\/h2>\n

His election marks a turning point in Panama\u2019s democracy. During the presidential campaign, Cortizo received support from various political independents and social sectors that were eager to prevent the Paname\u00f1ista Party from taking over the executive branch. Additionally, Cortizo\u2019s campaign promised a fight against corruption and a revival of the national economy, giving priority to local projects and debt reduction.<\/p>\n

A decade after the end of the dictatorship of Manuel Antonio Noriega in 1998, Democratic Change was founded as a new center-right political alternative. Today, CD controls 18 out of 71 seats in the country\u2019s national assembly, making it the second-largest delegation in Panama\u2019s current legislature. Previously, CD controlled Panama\u2019s legislative assembly during the tenures of the country\u2019s two previous presidents.<\/p>\n

After the end of his term in 2014,\u00a0Democratic Change leader Ricardo Martinelli<\/a>\u00a0had to face a series of judicial inquiries that ultimately led to trial without the possibility of bail. Martinelli was tried by Panama\u2019s supreme court on charges of corruption and illegal wiretapping of political adversaries, journalists and other prominent figures during his tenure.<\/p>\n

With an initial arrest warrant issued in 2015, Martinelli was detained by authorities in the US in 2017 and, a year later, extradited to Panama at the national government\u2019s request. As his trial was ongoing, Martinelli was denied the opportunity to participate in Panama City\u2019s local elections. Most recently, in early August of this year, a court found Martinelli\u00a0not guilty<\/a>, ending his house arrest.<\/p>\n

President Varela\u2019s Unconventional Path<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Former President Juan Carlos Varela served as vice president to Martinelli between 2009 and 2014 as part of a coalition formed by CD and Varela\u2019s own Paname\u00f1ista. Nevertheless, in the 2014 election, Varela faced off against Martinelli\u2019s CD and defeated the party\u2019s candidate, Jos\u00e9 Domingo Arias. Thus, Martinelli and Varela\u2019s joint political tenure and alliance ended in 2011.<\/p>\n

A businessman and engineer,\u00a0Varela<\/a>\u00a0led the Paname\u00f1ista Party, a right-wing political formation founded in 1931. Presided over by Varela between 2006 and 2016, Paname\u00f1ista only held 16 out of 71 seats in the national assembly during his tenure as president. In addition to his weak legislative position, Varela\u2019s government faced harsh criticism for its pro-business legislation and tax reforms, which were perceived as having mostly favored the country\u2019s upper classes and foreign capital. Furthermore, Varela himself, coming from a family of entrepreneurs within the country\u2019s liquor industry, was seen as disconnected from the average citizen.<\/p>\n

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