Martinelli Says The Fifth Chamber is Necessary
President Ricardo Martinelli said today the "Fifth Chamber" of the Supreme Court is need to streamline processes. In 2008, while campaigning for the presidency, Martinelli declared his opposition to the "Fifth Chamber" and said it was the intention of the then ruling party (PRD) to create the new chamber in the Supreme Court in order to protect the back of the president at the time, Martin Torrijos. The president expressed his support for the Fifth Chamber on Friday during a ceremony to inaugurate the new North Concourse of the Tocumen International Airport. Members of the PRD have warned they would file a complaint against the creation of the Fifth Chamber as unconstitutional, as the bill is discussed in the second debate in the National Assembly. National Assembly Deputy Agustin Sellhorn said the President only changed his stance to adapt to the times, and he knows how to make adjustments to his position when necessary. (Telemetro)
Editor's Comment: Ah hem ... Bullshit (all around). Back in 1999 then president Ernesto Perez Balladares created this concept of adding the "Fifth Chamber" to the Supreme Court. At that time, he was trying to change the rules so he could run for another term. When Mireya Moscoso got elected she squashed it, and it stayed squashed until it was brought back to life by Ricardo Martinelli. The "bullshit" part is when any politician tells you the new court is needed to streamline the processes, clear out backlog, or what have you. In reality this move serves to give any sitting president three more appointments to the court, changing the math, and allowing him to take over the judicial branch of government. Everyone knows this, and it's going to happen anyway. And the funny thing is, all of the PRD politicians are on record as supporting the Fifth Court as necessary, when it was being proposed originally by Ernesto Perez Balladares. And I think it's ironic as hell that Martinelli is taking a page out of their own playbook, and then beating them in the head with it. Are .. we ... having ... fun ... yet ... ?
