As Panama faces a major blow to the economy brought on by the COVID-19 crisis   the government which before the pandemic had promised  a belt-tightening year has handed out a $1,7 direct to polish the Presidency image. image.

  The contract managed by the vice president  José Gabriel Carrizo is based on a “well-founded technical report” that justifies the hiring and speaks of knowing the needs of Panamanians around the coronavirus, and “government branding”  make it clear that it is “the strategic planning of the image of the head of government as the first engine that moves the country, aligned to the central plan of 'Uniting Forces', which constitutes the genesis or structural base on which the image of the government is built ” and other polished marketing doublespeak.

Although it was managed in the midst of the pandemic, reports La Prensa, this is a marginal issue in direct hiring. In fact, the technical report indicates that systematic market research studies will be carried out, such as qualitative ones, which involve "in-depth interviews and group sessions between interest groups to delve into feelings and attitudes with certain topics ...".

Vice President of the Republic, José Gabriel Gaby Carrizo, managed the direct hiring of the company Mercadeo Integral for an amount of almost $1,750,000, for the provision of advertising services of branding marketing and communication for the Ministry of the Presidency.

Despite the fact that the pandemic would be the justification for this direct contracting, the words pandemic, coronavirus or Covid-19 are not mentioned even once in the draft contract to La Prensa had access, although there are some paragraphs in which the "current situation" is mentioned. However, the documents that justify the contract do mention the referred concepts, although the scope of the contract is much more ambitious.

In the documents that preceded the hiring, there are no indications that other proposals have been sought. On the contrary, only that of the Integral Marketing company was considered –and approved–. It’s proposal was addressed to the Vice President on March 15, 2020, two days after the declaration of the State of National Emergency.

In addition to detailing its services, Comprehensive Marketing included in its letter to Carrizo the period by which it would offer them - from March 15 to August 15, 2020 - as well as the price - $ 1.75 million -, a price that was accepted without objection by the Presidency  Communications Secretary, Óscar Ramos, nor of the former Deputy Minister of the Presidency Juan Carlos Muñoz who resigned on Monday, Apr.27 over the hospital ventilator pricing scandal..

In a "well-founded technical report", presented by Ramos and Muñoz the day after Integral Marketing offered its services, these officials stated that this company is recognized and that it has experience in the local and international market.

They added that the company "enjoys our confidence to carry out this activity when required; and, it also fulfills the requirements of responsibility, security, and discretion demanded by the Ministry of the Presidency for the provision of the type of service that is to be contracted, which includes direct interaction with the President of the Republic, and the Vice President and Minister of the Presidency ”.

The selection of the company was also supported by its immediate availability for the development, study and presentation of strategic communication plans, and by its credit facilities since it has adequate financial solvency.

With "the product of this information, directional objectives, specific objectives, identification of opportunities, determination of objectives and marketing and communication strategies for the image of the government are established," the report indicates.

And so that there is no doubt that the pandemic was a marginal issue in this direct hiring, the report indicates that systematic market research studies will be carried out, such as qualitative ones, which involve “in-depth interviews and group sessions between interest groups to deepen feelings and attitudes with certain topics, whether daily, those that result from government branding plans or emerging ones, such as the coronavirus case ”.

Something very different from what was stated in this same "founded technical report", which justified the hiring in the development of management focused on the priorities of the citizens, especially in terms of development, needs and problems generated around the Covid-19; strengthen the institution in attention to human and material resources, in order to present the best campaigns to sensitize and engage all citizens; and use tools that ensure the effectiveness of communication processes through advertising.