PanamaTimes

Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Elisa Suárez: We have no idea what the economic plan for Panama is

Elisa Suárez: We have no idea what the economic plan for Panama is

Panama Association of Business Executives (Apede) candidate for Apede precidency, Elisa Suárez talks about the economic outlook in the absence of a revival plan.

How many companies will have to close?

If I tell you I'm lying. What can happen is very uncertain – but many.

The estimation is 400,000 unemployed people, will it fall short?

We calculate that it will be more than that, because they only calculate the formal sector. We have to include the independent and informal ones.

Does the economic plan exist?

We don't know. We are blind. We have no idea what the plan is.

Why do you think they don't disclose it?

I trust it is because they want to be safe. Because it would be very sad to think that there is no plan.

What should the State cut funds from?

Now more than ever, they should be more restrained with public spending. Travel, hiring and reducing the payroll will have to be suspended. Today the sacrifices are being made only by the private sector. The government has continued to show solidarity, but with its officials.

How do you evaluate the health part?

It played a basic role in the beginning. But it lacked traceability and isolated people on time. The consequence is what we see now. They have to correct the way of executing the plans and be more open to considerations that lead us to reduce infections more effectively.

And, the economic part?

Tragic. Health had to be prioritized, but it should have had a balance. The consequence would not have been as bad as what we will experience. We will have to align ourselves ... enough political colors, ideologies and particular interests.

Is the economic part carried by Health or the health part is carried by the Economy?

The economic part is carried by Health. And while that continues to happen, we will continue to be confined and with a deteriorating economy. Let everyone play their role. We have made proposals, but we do not know if they have come to fruition. The eight tables that the government created initially never met. Or, at least, they never called us.

Tripartite table. Will it mean something?

I don't think so, because there is no consensus, and apparently they don't want to build. So the decision will have to be made by the government – and that is dangerous.

The Insurance crisis is compounded by Covid-19. What would be your proposal?

Since they haven't called us and it seems they never will, we will make our own table to create solutions.

What is the government not understanding in this crisis?

That they are not alone. That in the guilds there is the potential and energy to do sensible and viable things. They must put forth the idea that consulting is co-governing. When will they understand that in all the productive sectors there are valuable professionals who could contribute?

And, the entrepreneurs?

We have to put down private interests for the common good. Let's keep trying to contribute. In the end, the responsibility for the economy and the generation of jobs falls on us [entrepreneurs].

Is the government or the businessmen more corrupt?

In both there are corrupt and good.

How do you reactivate a company with depressed consumption and people without money?

With much effort and desire. I don't know how, but giving up is not an option.

"It will be useless to be healthy, if we are going to be broke." Agree?

I wouldn't say it like that. Health is not just the absence of disease, but having everything we need to live.

How would you liberate the country?

I would not do it by blocks but by regions. The blocks are too short for national needs. The regions that are very productive and have almost no contagion, why not allow them to open and produce? The majority of infections are in very specific areas. Hunger will be the other pandemic ...

Government. Lack of leadership, clarity or communication?

I think it lacks a little of all three.

The age of your opponent, strength or weakness?

I highly respect his struggles, his experience and his career, but there is a new story to write.

If you weren't running, would you vote for your opponent?

No. He wouldn't vote for me either, I think.

His specific objective, if he wins the Apede presidency?

Work for internal cohesion and be a union capable of saying what other unions do not dare to say.

A self-criticism of Apede?

We must improve administrative systems to have better communication with our members.

How do you respond to those who say that Apede is a theoretical group?

Yes, we are a group of thought, but we put proposals on the table.

Pending tasks of democracy?

Institutionality, respect for free enterprise and citizen rights.
Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
In a highly politically motivated trial, Brazil’s Supreme Court finds former leader Bolsonaro guilty of plotting coup
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
Air Canada Begins Flight Cancellations Ahead of Flight Attendant Lockout
Southwest Airlines Apologizes After 'Accidentally Forgetting' Two Blind Passengers at New Orleans Airport and Faces Criticism Over Poor Service for Passengers with Disabilities
Mexico Extradites 26 Cartel Figures to the United States in Coordinated Security Operation
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Spain Scraps F-35 Jet Deal as Trump Pushes for More NATO Spending
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
California Clinic Staff Charged for Interfering with ICE Arrest
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Brazilian Congress Rejects Lula's Proposed Tax Increase on Financial Transactions
Landslide in Bello, Colombia, Results in Multiple Casualties
Papa Johns pizza surge near the Pentagon tipped off social media before Trump's decisive Iran strike
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Sole Survivor of Air India Crash Recounts Escape
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
×