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Panama Viejo Children's Center Closed for Almost a Year, Leaving Dozens Unattended
🇵🇦 Panama /Culture & Society

Panama Viejo Children's Center Closed for Almost a Year, Leaving Dozens Unattended

From TVN Panamá · (14m ago) Spanish Critical tone

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • The Integral Center Olsedis Andrés Gesto in Panama Viejo has been closed for nearly a year, leaving around 100 children without care.
  • Reports indicate significant infrastructure deterioration, including corrosion, mold, and damaged walls, preventing the center's reopening.
  • Local authorities are criticized for a lack of response to repeated requests for repairs, impacting families who rely on the center for childcare and early education.

The prolonged closure of the Integral Center Olsedis Andrés Gesto in Panama Viejo represents a deeply concerning failure of municipal responsibility, leaving nearly 100 vulnerable children without essential care and early education services for almost a year. This situation, marked by visible infrastructure decay and a deafening silence from the Mayor's Office of Panama, is not merely an administrative oversight but a stark indictment of the current administration's priorities.

Esta es una instalación que brinda un servicio esencial a la primera infancia y no puede estar en abandono

— Rodolfo RodríguezDescribing the importance of the center and condemning its current state of neglect.

Rodolfo Rodríguez, the local representative, has rightly labeled the situation "worrying and sad." His description of the center's state—corrosion, rampant mold, poor drainage, and damaged walls—paints a grim picture of neglect. This is not a facility that can be easily patched up; it requires significant structural intervention, the responsibility for which clearly lies with the municipal government. The fact that the Communal Board has attempted to maintain external areas highlights their commitment, but they are understandably unable to address the internal structural issues.

From our perspective in Panama, this issue transcends simple infrastructure maintenance. It speaks to a fundamental disregard for early childhood development, a critical phase for a child's future and, by extension, the nation's. Many families, particularly mothers, depended on this center to work, knowing their children were in a safe and educational environment. Its closure disrupts livelihoods and educational trajectories. Furthermore, the parallel closure of another nearby center, CAIPI "Arrullito Mío," due to pending permits, suggests a systemic problem in how the municipality handles facilities vital to the community's well-being.

Estamos dispuestos a trabajar con la comunidad en limpieza y pintura, pero las obras estructurales como drenaje y muros le corresponden al municipio

— Rodolfo RodríguezClarifying the limits of community efforts and emphasizing the municipality's responsibility for structural repairs.

We call upon the authorities to immediately address this crisis. Prioritizing investment in child-focused infrastructure is not an option; it is an imperative for building a stronger Panama. Leaving a center that serves so many families in such a state of abandonment is unacceptable. The community, and most importantly, the children, deserve a swift and decisive response that ensures the reopening of the Olsedis Andrés Gesto center and a renewed commitment to the well-being of our youngest citizens.

Estamos hablando de la base del país. No se puede dejar en abandono un centro que beneficia a tantas familias

— Rodolfo RodríguezHighlighting the critical role of early childhood centers for national development and criticizing their abandonment.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by TVN Panamá in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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