What I heard on the radio on Friday is that Martinelli's political capital has crashed and burned - to nearly 20% - Check out this poll prior to the crisis with the Indians.
As of Jan 19 he lost over 40% of his support and he is going down...down...down....
I am super disappointed at the way he handled the riots - people were kidnapped here, police stations burned and roads closed which cost the country millions - there are even rumours he went to the US to attend the Super Bowl - while Rome was burning...
Where is martinell??? He had his minister of Tourism speaking today that Mr. martinelli is around and in control - but he has not addressed the nation about the crisis.... Where is Waldo??? Is he with Martinelli????
I agree give the Indians control over their resources - but they should leave the rest of the country alone to develop what needs to be developed....
FROM LA PRENSA
Martinelli is less popular than Perez Balladares and Martin Torrijos when he spent half of his presidency.
MIZRACHI FLOWER ANGEL
flor@prensa.com
DESCENT. The president Ricardo Martinelli began his term with an approval rate of 85.9%. Today, dissatisfied with his government reached 48.6%. PRESS / Archive
Fewer and fewer Panamanians approve of Ricardo Martinelli. The businessman who was promoted as the manager of change needed Panama, promising an end to the corrupt practices of the traditional political class and came to power with a sweeping 60.1% of the vote today does not enjoy overwhelming acceptance.
When you serve half of his mandate, the support of the President is so divided that the group that approves their actions only by 2% than the group that disapproves. Today, 50.6% think that their work is good or very good, 48.6% think it is bad or very bad, and 0.8% did not know the answer.
It follows from the last survey commissioned by this newspaper to Unimer, carried out between 19 and 22 January 2012 and is based on a sample of 203 thousand people, with a margin of error of 2.8%.
The perception that management is good or excellent Martinelli reached its lowest level since October 2009 when it was first measured. At that time had a 85.9% approval, 35.3% more than now. And if you compare your current decline compared to July 2011, when he served two years in office and marked 64% positive rating, the decline has been more than 13 points.
The current survey also reveals that the perception that the president's management is poor or very poor reaches its highest level since coming to power. In October 2009, only 10.2% of Panamanians had a negative image of their performance. When he finished his first year in office, the figure rose to 28.5%. Upon completion of its first two years in power, that percentage jumped to 35.2%, while now, and half fulfilled its mandate, the group of protesters reached 48.6%.
If the comparison is made between Martinelli and its predecessors, the results are not encouraging. Although Martinelli came to the Palace of the Herons with more support than the polls were Ernesto Perez Balladares (33%), Mireya Moscoso (44%) and Martin Torrijos (47%), a comparison of the last survey of this newspaper with similar studies in the middle of the previous government management by Dichter & Neira for La Prensa, Martinelli realize that just exceeds the Moscoso Panamenista citizen evaluations. A Torrijos and the PRD Perez B. fared better than the incumbent.
In March 2002, fulfilling half of his administration, Moscoso was rated positively or very positively by 44% of respondents. In order of popularity followed, as stated, Martinelli with 50.6%. B. Perez then placed that in March 1997 totaled 52.1% among those who thought their work was good or very good, while in the first seat was positioned Torrijos positive image with 66.1% of public acceptance (to March 2007).
These data are of special significance when one remembers that when he turned his first 100 days in office, Martinelli recorded a popularity rating higher than the levels achieved by its three predecessors. In its first three months in office, Perez B. was 81.3%, while Moscoso and Torrijos had 70%. Martinelli, as noted earlier, managed in the same period 85.9% acceptance.
The decline in popularity of the president is not casual. In recent weeks, the administration has faced tough questioning Martinelli due to scandals that have not been resolved, such as free allocation of 54 hectares of land on the shores of John Hombrón coclesanas to close to power, the purchase of radars with assumptions Finmeccanica overruns of over $ 250 million and use of state funds to favor campaign or elected officials (legislators, representatives and mayors) for Democratic Change party president.
In addition, the president has been roundly criticized by the large number of contracts delivered directly, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, lack of transparency in the construction of the third phase of the coastal strip, the use of DG Income as a tool to punish opponents and critics of this government, and the precipitous decline of Panama in the recent ranking of freedom of expression made by the international organization Reporters Without Borders.
This picture becomes more bleak for the possibility that because Martinelli is preparing to appoint three judges of a Chamber of the Supreme Court shall have power to prosecute members, authorize interceptions of private communications and resolve habeas data.
CLUSTER OF CONCERNS
But Panamanians not only care about performance and handling Martinelli. According to the latest survey Unimer, the work of the Cabinet also generates discontent. Less than half of respondents (43%) believe that their work can be considered good or excellent. The group is becoming less satisfied, because in July 2010, 54.2% thought positively of the ministers, while in October 2009, the vast majority (72.8%) considered them good or excellent.
In addition, 59.8% of respondents think the current government is inefficient or very inefficient in handling public funds, and an even higher percentage (77.1%) ensures that it does so with little or no transparency. On this point, the government has argued that there is information to be sensitive and national security can not be disclosed, thus evading questions about the handling of taxpayers' money.
Although the government promised in this campaign think about the interests of the majority, forgetting the traditional practice of governing for the few, the public perception is that this is a government that acts on behalf of minorities. The 70.8% holding this view.
Martinelli also promised, both in campaign and in the exercise of its president, to end corruption as this corroded institutions and increased poverty. However, 44% of respondents (mostly college-educated people and residents in urban areas of the country) believes that this government is very corrupt, compared with 11% who think it's pretty honest. Another significant 44% believe the government is not corrupt or honest. And in fact, only 19.8% think that corruption has decreased.
Another issue of concern to respondents is the Executive interference in other state bodies. Six out of ten Panamanians believe that respecting the autonomy of the Supreme Court, while two out of three believe that the independence of the municipalities is being violated. This abuse of power is also reflected in the opinion of 59.6% who think that Panama can not express themselves freely without threat or pressure.
And despite that 2011 closed with a good growth, there is concern about the economic situation. The survey reveals that at least four in ten respondents think the economy worsened in the past year. The same amount of people believe that in 12 months is even worse.
The complete survey results can be seen today in the Pulse of the Nation, which runs with this newspaper.
