What they are afraid to do
by Miguel Antonio Bernal
The need for a new Constitution, in order to update the structures of the Panamanian government and its institutions, is becoming more relevant day by day.
This has led to the traditional opponents of a constitutional convention — the neo-opportunists of the plutocracy and the barnyard party abandoning their isolation to join the Creole encyclopedists of the anti-constituent current, which now flows towards a constitutionalism that’s more authoritarian. Change so that nothing changes.
What they fear is that a political system can be established in our country with methods, rules and procedures that pull our dismembered society together, establish citizen controls, elect democratic and honest governments and make collective decisions in favor of the nation.
What the fugitives from a constitutional convention and their “parallel process” allies fear doing is a truly democratic and non-police political system. But let the will of the majority of citizens prevail: we are the ones who must make the decisions and enforce our citizen power. Ours are unlike the interests that they would defend with a parallel convention. They play pure Gatopardismo pretending to be he on the cutting edge of change so as to cut things off so that there is no change.
What the creators, and today promoters, fear about article 314 of the constitution and the parallel process that may be opened up is that the population might know their rights, as well as benefits of the progress achieved by humanity in the constitutional field — techniques of freedom and citizens’ control.
What those who ask citizens to sign a blank check fear is that people will understand the implications of their negotiation with the Electoral Tribunal, that citizens, via to a constituent process, would unmask their electoral demagoguery and it would lead to a true constitutional state with the rule of law.
What they are afraid to do — those who try to deceive with their “Panama Decides Foundation” and their allies the plutocrats and the political parties — is to allow citizen participation through the exercise of their constituent and citizen power. Inherent rights empower public sentiment for an originating process through which they regain their freedoms, their equality before the law and the right to be happy. The parallel process isn’t really for constitutional change because it’s just the same old crowd excluding everyone else.
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