Ana Matilde Gómez

Ana Matilde Gómez Ruiloba (born November 5, 1962) is a Panamanian lawyer and politician who served as the country's Attorney General from 2005 to 2010, and a deputy of the National Assembly from 2014 to 2019. She was a candidate for President of Panama in the 2019 general election.

Ana Matilde Gómez
Member of the National Assembly
In office
July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2019
PresidentJuan Carlos Varela
ConstituencyCircuit 8-7 (Ancón, Bella Vista, Betania, Calidonia, Curundú, El Chorrillo, Pueblo Nuevo, San Felipe, Santa Ana)
Attorney General of Panama
In office
January 3, 2005 – February 5, 2010
President
Preceded byJosé Antonio Sossa
Succeeded byGiuseppe Bonissi
Personal details
Born
Ana Matilde Gómez Ruiloba

(1962-11-05) November 5, 1962
Panama City, Panama
Political partyIndependent
Spouse(s)
Francisco Sousa Lennox
​
​
(m. 2004)​
Children2
Education
OccupationLawyer, politician
Websitewww.anamatildegomez.com

Biography

Ana Matilde Gómez was born in Panama City on November 5, 1962. She holds a licentiate in law and political sciences and a master's degree in criminology, both from the University of Panama, and a diploma in human rights from the Universidad Católica Santa María La Antigua.[1] She married pediatrician Francisco Sousa Lennox in 2004.[2]

She has held various public sector positions in the area of law, working within the Public Ministry as a scribe, senior officer, judicial secretary, municipal spokesperson, circuit court prosecutor, assistant district attorney, then as a corporate lawyer in the Interoceanic Region Authority and legal executive director of the Truth Commission.[3]

On the academic level, she has taught criminology and human rights at the Latin University of Panama. She practiced as a trial lawyer in the area of criminal law, and was a legal consultant for Panama Canal river basin improvement projects.

Attorney General of Panama

Gómez was the first woman to head the Office of the Attorney General, taking over on January 3, 2005.[1] Her term would have lasted until December 31, 2014, but on February 5, 2010, she left office by order of the Supreme Court, which suspended her during an investigation for abuse of authority.[4]

She was denounced by a prosecutor from La Chorrera, whom she had dismissed after he was caught soliciting a bribe from the father of a detained minor.[5] He accused Gómez after the Court ruled that the telephone interceptions that she ordered in the course of the investigation against him were illegal.[6] On August 11, 2009, the Supreme Court ordered Gómez's dismissal and sentenced her to six months in jail, commutable for a payment of 4,000 balboas.[7] In addition, in 2010 she was disqualified from holding public office for four years.[8]

On February 16, 2011, she filed a lawsuit against the Panamanian state in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights for the violation of its judicial guarantees in the process that removed her from office. She alleged that her dismissal and conviction were arbitrary.[9]

Member of the Legislative Assembly

On May 4, 2014, Gómez was elected to the National Assembly for Circuit 8-7, receiving more votes than any other deputy.[1][10] This was the subject of controversy, as several political analysts claimed that Gómez's candidacy was unconstitutional, since in 2010 she had been disqualified from holding public office.[8] However, a ruling by the Supreme Court reduced the original penalty of four years of disqualification to six months, enabling Gómez to take her seat in the National Assembly.[11]

As a deputy, Gómez was a defender of human rights, and introduced 36 bills.[12] She was also very critical toward other deputies, claiming that the National Assembly requires "profound changes" in its internal organic regime and in the form of election of deputies.[13]

Presidential candidacy

In August 2017, she announced her intention to become a candidate for President of Panama for the term 2019–2024 via free application.[14] On January 11, 2019, the Electoral Tribunal announced that it had validated 131,415 signatures (meeting the requirement of 1% of votes cast in the last election), establishing Ana Matilde Gómez as one of the three free-application candidates for the presidency in the 2019 general election.[15][16]

She finished fifth overall, receiving 93,631 votes (4.7% of the total).[17]

References
  1. "Ana Matilde Gómez: La diputada más votada que busca llegar a la silla presidencial" [Ana Matilde Gómez: The Most-Voted-For Deputy Who Seeks to Reach the Presidential Seat] (in Spanish). Eco TV. January 9, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  2. Oliveros C., Santos J. (April 16, 2019). "Francisco, el suspiro de amor de Ana Matilde" [Francisco, Ana Matilde's Sigh of Love]. Día a día (in Spanish). Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  3. Martínez C., Oscar A. (December 22, 2004). "Voces a favor y en contra de Ana Matilde Gómez" [Voices For and Against Ana Matilde Gómez]. Panamá América (in Spanish). Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  4. Lara, Denise (February 5, 2010). "Ana Matilde Gómez abandonó la Procuraduría" [Ana Matilde Gómez Leaves the Office of the Attorney General] (in Spanish). Telemetro. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  5. Lara, Denise (February 5, 2010). "Procuradora Gómez fue notificada por Corte Suprema" [Attorney General Gómez Put on Notice By the Supreme Court] (in Spanish). Telemetro. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  6. Otero, José (November 18, 2009). "Ex fiscal destituido declara contra Gómez" [Deposed Former Prosecutor Testifies Against Gómez]. La Prensa (in Spanish). Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  7. "Condenan a Ana Matilde Gómez" [Ana Matilde Gómez Sentenced]. La Prensa (in Spanish). August 11, 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  8. "Diputada más votada es objeto de demanda" [Most-Voted-For Deputy is Object of Complaint]. La Prensa (in Spanish). May 23, 2014. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  9. "CIDH admite demanda de diputada Gómez por violación de sus derechos judiciales" [IACHR Accepts Suit by Deputy Gómez for Violation of Her Judicial Rights] (in Spanish). TVN. November 13, 2018. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  10. "Ana Matilde Gómez sería la diputada más votada en Panamá" [Ana Matilde Gómez to Be the Most-Voted-For Deputy in Panama]. La Prensa (in Spanish). May 7, 2014. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  11. Gutiérrez Sanjur, Jorge (May 30, 2014). "Corte habilita a Ana Matilde Gómez para ejercer cargos públicos" [Court Enables Ana Matilde Gómez to Hold Public Office] (in Spanish). TVN. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  12. Moreno, I.P. de (October 4, 2016). "Por el rescate de recién nacidos que son abandonados" [For the Rescue of Newborns Who are Abandoned] (in Spanish). National Assembly. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  13. "'La Asamblea requiere cambios profundos': Ana Matilde Gómez" ['The Assembly Requires Profound Changes': Ana Matilde Gómez] (in Spanish). TVN. October 8, 2018. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  14. "Diputada Ana Matilde activa su aspiración presidencial" [Deputy Ana Matilde Acts on Her Presidential Aspiration]. En Segundos (in Spanish). August 4, 2017. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  15. Gordón Guerrel, Ismael (January 11, 2019). "Se completa número de candidatos a la Presidencia" [Number of Candidates for the Presidency is Finalized]. La Estrella de Panamá (in Spanish). Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  16. Vega Loo, Manuel (January 11, 2019). "TE confirma candidaturas de Gómez, Ameglio y Lombana; se depuraron más de 2.9 millones de firmas" [TE Confirms Candidacies of Gómez, Ameglio, and Lombana; More Than 2.9 Million Signatures Were Cleared]. La Prensa (in Spanish). Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  17. "Elecciones Panamá 2019" (in Spanish). Observatorio de Gobierno. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.