President Ricardo Martinelli faces a new challenge to his get tough with demonstrators stance as retirees plan to block roads across the country if he doesn’t respond to their petition.
Will his “Don’t mess with me” and “You can’t close the streets” message work with the golden age folks?
The last protest by  pensioners, in 2008, successfully blocked traffic as they simply sat on chairs spread across roads. Tear gas and batons used on the aged doesn’t look good on television as the former president discovered when presidential guards lit in to jubilado protesters near the presidential palace.
Eladio Fernandez, a spokesman for the Association of Independent Retirees Panama, told Telemetro Report that in  April retirees will launch a new round of protests across the country if there is no action in response to a petition to the Presidency of the Republic, on March 12.
Among the requests is the cancelation of the 7% transfer tax on a $1000 property deposit, and the restoration of price control office, said Fernandez.

While the group was open to a dialogue with the government it seemed that “without closing the streets we get no benefits.”

SUNTRACS no demonstration. Pensioners ok? A tough choice.