Bribery, graft and dirty politics are all too common in Latin America, but a noxious combination of the three has dogged the Central American dynamo in what ought to be its finest hour. And unless Panama can shake the curse, its glory may prove fleeting.
Panama's Supreme Court has ordered the detention of former President Ricardo Martinelli, prompting the absent millionaire supermarket tycoon on Tuesday to furiously dismiss the ruling as a "political trial."
MIAMI — Just outside downtown Miami, in a luxury condo building made famous by the 1980s hits "Scarface" and "Miami Vice," a billionaire ex-president is holed up in exile.
PANAMA CITY – A former Panamanian government official was arrested Thursday night over suspected corruption, the latest ex-minister to be nabbed in a widening graft probe into the administration of ex-President Ricardo Martinelli.
PANAMA CITY – Panama's former Vice President Felipe Virzi has been arrested for alleged money laundering, adding to a lengthening list of former associates of ex-President Ricardo Martinelli jailed on corruption charges.
Ricardo Martinelli, who has been out of the country since January, is currently under investigation by the Supreme Court for alleged involvement in inflating government contracts by $45 million.
Aiming to have completely bilingual education by 2030, the Varela government has launched a pilot program to send 1,000 teachers to the United States for specialized English-language training. Eventually, 30,000 teachers will participate in the program over the next 15 years.
Conservative Juan Carlos Varela, the vice president who broke politically with President Ricardo Martinelli, was officially declared Panama's next president Sunday. Since the United States overthrew dictator Manuel Noriega in 1989, the incumbent's party has never won re-election.
