Nicaraguan FM Moncada Visits Fugitive Martinelli in Panama
Ricardo Martinelli has been granted asylum in the Nicaraguan embassy in Panama since last February. Some say he ran the recent presidential campaign from a hammock in his refuge.
HAVANA TIMES – Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada attended the inauguration of the newly elected President Jose Raul Mulino in Panama on July 1st. During his trip, he also took the opportunity to visit fugitive former President Ricardo Martinelli, who has been a guest with asylum of the Nicaraguan embassy since February.
“I received the pleasant visit of the honorable Foreign Minister of Nicaragua, Denis Moncada, who came for the inauguration of President Jose Raul Mulino,” Martinelli shared on his Instagram account.
Martinelli also shared a photograph showing that the current Foreign Minister of the Ortega regime arrived accompanied by a Nicaraguan delegation, including the Minister of Commerce and the Minister of the Interior. The Nicaraguan ambassador to Panama also joined in the photograph of this meeting.
From his exile in the Nicaraguan embassy, Martinelli expressed his happiness and gratitude to Panama for the opportunity to change the country.
“You don’t know how much I am enjoying here in my hammock on a day like today; I am truly happy and content. Thank you, Panama, for giving us the opportunity to change this country,” Martinelli expressed in a video.
Many Panamanians attribute Mulino’s victory to Martinelli, even suggesting that he directed the electoral campaign from his hammock, a venue he frequently uses since taking refuge in the Nicaraguan embassy. This diplomatic headquarters has also been heavily criticized for being used for political purposes.
During his first speech as president, Mulino remembered his “friend” Martinelli, whom he replaced for the elections on May 5th, after the former president was politically disqualified due to a sentence of more than 10 years in prison for money laundering.
“I am proud to have been part of that government that made us dream big and which President Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014), my friend, led for the benefit of the people.