Although Article 180 of the Political Constitution says that anyone who has been convicted of an intentional crime with a custodial sentence of five years or more cannot be elected president of the Republic, employing an enforceable sentence, the State Commission for Justice on Monday, February 5, received Ricardo Martinelli, who was nominated by the Realizing Goals and Alianza parties as a presidential candidate.

On Friday, February 2, the Supreme Court of Justice announced that it did not admit the appeal filed by the former president's lawyers, which sought to reverse the 128-month prison sentence and a fine of $19.2 million imposed by the New Business case.

The State Commission for Justice has called on the presidential candidates for the May 5 elections to explain their vision of the changes that should be made in the administration of justice.

In front of the commission, Martinelli victimized himself. “I feel concerned about justice in Panama. When I was president I made many mistakes thinking that prosecutors and judges responded by law. The biggest mistake was increasing the (prison) sentences and especially the accumulation of sentences. This is a concept that seems simple when you have not been to prison. There have to be strong penalties but not excessive ones,” he stated in front of the Attorney General of the Administration Rigoberto González, coordinator of the group; the Ombudsman, Eduardo Leblanc; the president of the National Bar Association, Maritza Cedeño; and Carlos Lee, from the Citizen Alliance for Justice, among others.

The Attorney General, Javier Caraballo, was not present nor was the independent deputy Juan Diego Vásquez.

No Justice  
“There is no justice, justice is useless. They receive orders from the Executive and other people (...),” said Martinelli, flanked by José Raúl Mulino, the vice presidential candidate who must now assume the presidential candidacy; and his spokesperson Luis Eduardo Camacho.

He denies justice but forgets the assaults he committed during his mandate reports La Prensa. For example, the first two jurists he appointed to the Court, José Abel Almengor and Alejandro Moncada, ended badly. Almengor resigned amid rumors that he participated in a plan to oust prosecutor Ana Matilde Gómez from office; while Moncada was tried by the National Assembly, accused of unjustified enrichment and falsehood.

Furthermore, he never recognized the role of the State Commission for Justice. When they asked him why he did not take the State Pact into account for the appointments, he said: "What happens is that there are people who want to co-govern without participating... The people did not choose me to co-govern...".

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