General John Kelly, then commander of US Southern Command, meeting then Panamanian Minister of Public Security José Mulino during an official visit to Panama in February 2013. Photo: Miguel Moreno/US Embassy Panama/File photo.
José Raúl Mulino has been elected president of Panama. He replaced the disqualified former president Ricardo Martinelli, who was convicted of money laundering.
On the night of Sunday, May 5, the Electoral Court of Panama notified José Mulino that he was the preliminary winner of the presidential elections with 34.41% of the votes, followed by Ricardo Lombana of the Other Path Movement (MOCA) with 24.96%.
With 96% of the votes counted, the Electoral Court announced Martinelli’s successor as the preliminary winner, with 738,000 votes.
In addition to the president, Panamanians also elected 71 deputies to the National Assembly, 20 to the Central American Parliament, 81 mayors, 701 township representatives, and 11 councilors for the 2024-2029 term.
Momento en que el Tribunal Electoral @tepanama realiza la llamada al candidato presidencial José Raúl Mulino indicándole que es el ganador de esta contienda electoral.#Voto2024 #PanamaEnDirecto
Sigue la transmisión en https://t.co/pHHUluI0zc pic.twitter.com/hCsWyQz7yw— Panamá En Directo (@panamaendirecto) May 6, 2024
“I am pleased, on behalf of the Electoral Tribunal, to inform you that according to our unofficial results transmission system, you are currently the unofficial winner of the presidency of the Republic in the 2024 general elections,” stated the president of the Electoral Tribunal, Alfredo Juncá, in a video.
The political return of José Raúl Mulino
Less than two months ago, Mulino began appearing on the electoral ballots with “the objective” of returning Panama to the “economic bonanza” it had a decade ago. During this period, he held the position of Minister of Security under Martinelli’s management.
However, in his speech, the now-elected president never mentioned how they managed to reach those economic levels. During Ricardo Martinelli’s presidency, there was a historical global context from which Panama took advantage, specifically through the expansion of the Panama Canal and ports. Both were achievements inherited from Omar Torrijos’ prior government.
The growth of the Panamanian economy was marred by allegations of cost overruns in many works and by bribes paid by the Brazilian company Odebrecht.
President-elect Mulino did not explain how he plans to lead Panama to economic prosperity. He only referred to the past administration, despite it being marked by multiple acts of corruption and an increase in foreign debt.
In July 2023, Ricardo Martinelli received a 10-and-a-half-year prison sentence after being found guilty of money laundering in the New Business case.
The New Business case began in 2017, three years after Martinelli left the presidency. After investigations, the Panamanian authorities detected irregularities in the purchase of shares of the publisher Epasa, which ran three local media outlets.
Political landscape faced by Mulino
The elected president faced Panama with high levels of social tension, marked by fiscal, environmental, immigration, and corruption problems.
Added to this are last year’s massive protests against the extension of a contract by the Canadian mining company First Quantum Minerals. The protests led to the cancellation of the agreement and the definitive closure of the Minera Panama copper mine, which contributed almost 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
After learning the election results, José Raúl Mulino stated that his government would help Martinelli find “justice” and end his alleged “political persecution.”
Protests Continue in Panama Against Controversial Mining Contract
After failing to run in the presidential elections and amid his corruption conviction, the former Panamanian president is under the diplomatic protection of the Nicaraguan Embassy in Panama City while waiting for a permit to abandon Panama under political asylum protection.
During the presidential race, Mulino promised to “close” the Darién Jungle, through which migrants attempting to reach the United States pass, and repatriate “all of these people [immigrants] accordingly.” For this task, he will ask Colombia and the United States for assistance.
Controversies surrounding Mulino
During his tenure as Martinelli’s Minister of Security, Mulino was the target of harsh criticism due to the police repression of a protest by Indigenous banana growers in the northern provinces of Bocas del Toro and Chiriquí in 2010. The repession left two dead and more than 100 injured by pellet shots, including eye injuries.
Due to these actions, the other candidates for the elections demanded that the president-elect participate in the three debates held to respond to the matter. However, he refused to attend all of these presidential debates.
(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigón with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
