opinion

Town meetings and the city
by Miguel Antonio Bernal --- candidate for mayor of Panama City

I have decided on it, I have said it all my life and in this case there will be no exception to the rule. My plan of government and way of doing things in the Panama City mayor's office will have, with its open meetings, an effective mechanism for citizen participation in responsible discussion and the solution of problems.

This is how it will be: in each and every one of the 21 corregimientos that comprise the Capital District, citizens will have the possibility to express their opinions in debate about problems, directly questioning --- without mufflers --- the representantes and in my case everybody's mayor, about issues that the District of Panama faces.

The cabildo abierto, as Vladimiro Naranjo Mesa states in his book Teoría Constitucional e Instituciones Políticas, is "an institution whose origin traces back to the colonial epoch, which consists in giving the people the opportunity to participate, generally on the local, municipal or district level, in the the discussion of a proposed agreement." I would add that the cabildo abierto is a tool that opens the way to citizen participation, the antechamber to any type of political progress, and the only door to build a citizens' democracy (as Francisco Rubilaes well pointed out).

During these past months, I have crisscrossed different communities, taking my Alternativa radio program to the communities. The purpose: "to give voice to the voiceless," to listen to the live voices of the people and their problems and to see humble people open the doors to their homes to simply denounce what is wrong and call for a response --- it's something that fills me with energy and a sense of dignity in order to continue along this road.

Recently, in the Guarumalito neighborhood of Chilibre, the residents were saying that despite being near the lakes and the Madden Dam and the water treatment plant, for more than 30 years they haven't been able to count upon water every day. It has also been that way in neighborhoods like Monte Rico, Cabuyita, Villa Marta, Altos de Tocumén III and Buenos Aires de Chilibre --- all with fantastic names, which invite someone to think that they are communities with full services. Sadly, that's not the reality and action has to be taken.

In these "cabildos" the people have engaged in a dialogue in search of solutions and I have given them my support. To them I give my thanks, and my commitment to along with them resolve these matters, the persistence of which reflect the laziness and apathy of the local authorities when faced with their neighbors' problems.

Finally, during every program, in high spirits, we give away brooms as presents. Yes, my symbol is a broom, to sweep away the bad and also to bring in the good things that are so missing in our capital city.