Panama's Comptroller General, Anel 'Bolo' Flores, publicly criticized the Supreme Court and challenged deputies from the 'Vamos' faction. Flores pointed to the inaction of the judicial system in the case of former deputy Hector Brands, who is being investigated for unjust enrichment and money laundering. The Comptroller emphasized that the investigation has been ongoing since 2020, when Brands was still in office, and that the case was under the jurisdiction of the judicial branch. He stated that such situations reveal institutional weaknesses in the timely follow-up of potential crimes committed by high-ranking government officials. In his report, Flores also revealed that several deputies, mostly from the 'Vamos' coalition, have failed to render accounts of their funds, with some even requesting extensions of up to a year and a half for their reports. The Comptroller confirmed that, along with the Ministry of Economy and Finance, state sponsorship for the 'Mil Polleras' parade has been banned. He also spoke out against Christmas bonus requests, noting that the thirteenth month is already paid in full. Despite Panama's economic growth of 4.32% and a GDP of over 83 billion dollars, Flores warned that servicing the national debt, which exceeds 4 billion dollars, remains a major problem. He reiterated his proposal to abolish the '20-20' mechanism in the National Assembly, which allows each deputy to manage up to 20,000 dollars monthly for appointments, and confirmed that work is underway on a gradual reduction of staff.
