A tense incident occurred on the afternoon of Monday, March 23, 2026, at the offices of the National Secretariat for Afro-Panamanian Policies and Development (SENADAP). A team of officials from the Ministry of Social Development (Mides) attempted to serve an administrative action on the entity's director general, Professor Nolis Boris Góndola. He rejected the procedure and ordered the officials to immediately leave the premises. According to information from the Panama Afro Observatory (OPA), an advisor from the Mides Superior Office, a legal advisor from the ministry, and personnel from the Human Resources Directorate arrived at the location, presumably on the instructions of Minister Beatriz Carles de Arango. The report states that the director of SENADAP reacted strongly to the notification attempt, claiming he does not recognize the authority of Mides over his position. "I am not an official of Mides. The minister is not my boss," Góndola stated in a raised tone, according to witnesses. Subsequently, the official ordered the group to leave the premises, reiterating his refusal to accept any documents from the ministry. Before leaving, Mides officials informed that they were also carrying a notification for the deputy director general of SENADAP, Verónica Wharton, who was not in the offices at that time.
