Two of Panama’s most unlikely political bedfellows appear to be growing closer. Ricardo Lombana, president of the Movimiento Otro Camino (Moca) and runner-up in the 2024 presidential election, visited former president Ricardo Martinelli in Bogota, Colombia, where he is living in asylum, with confirmed contacts between the two beginning roughly four months ago, according to people close to both men.
What Happened
The meeting was confirmed by deputy Luis Eduardo Camacho, a close ally of Martinelli, during the television program En Contexto hosted by journalist Adelita Coriat. Camacho said Lombana visited Martinelli in early August, while the former president was undergoing spinal surgery at a private clinic in Bogota.
“Lombana visited him at the time of the operation, but at that moment Ricardo was in the operating room. That day there was no conversation. But he was there. That is not a secret. Any other conversations that may have taken place, I cannot confirm,” Camacho said. Pressed by Coriat on whether conversations had occurred, Camacho cautiously repeated: “I cannot confirm it.”
Lawyer Alejandro Pérez, who was with Martinelli at the time of the surgery, offered more detail in comments to La Prensa. He said the rapprochement between the two men, dubbed the ‘Ricardo Albertos’ in Panama’s political pop culture, began about four months ago and that they have since maintained fluid communication, including phone calls. Pérez said the first meeting took place in Bogota, though he could not specify the date.
“Mr. Lombana has explained to Mr. Martinelli how to fix the country. And Mr. Martinelli has explained to him how to take off economically,” Pérez said, adding that the two have found “many points of agreement.”
The Movimiento Otro Camino issued a statement confirming the meeting and the ongoing conversations, but denied, for now, any political deal or electoral alliance ahead of the May 2029 elections. La Prensa sought comment from Lombana, who did not respond.
Background
The apparent thaw is striking because Lombana built his political profile as one of Martinelli’s fiercest critics. Their public history includes a widely remembered moment on March 31, 2023, when, at the signing of the Electoral Ethics Pact, Lombana approached Martinelli to greet him. When criticized, Lombana said both were named Ricardo Alberto and were united by wanting the best for Panama, a remark that sparked a wave of indignation. He later acknowledged he could have chosen better words but defended his conduct as basic courtesy and pointed to what he called hypocrisy among critics who themselves meet with Martinelli.
Martinelli has been in asylum in Colombia since May 2025, avoiding a 10-year prison sentence in the New Business case. Because the conviction left him disqualified from holding office, the Realizando Metas presidential candidacy passed to Jose Raul Mulino, who won the May 2024 election. Lombana finished second.
Panama has a long history of political rivals joining forces, from the PRD with the Christian Democrats in 2005, to Cambio Democratico and the Panamenista Party in 2019, and Martin Torrijos with Mayer Mizrachi and the Partido Popular in 2024. But a Martinelli-Lombana alignment was, until recently, considered unthinkable.
Signs of friction are also visible within Moca. Deputy Jose Perez Barboni said he had no information about the meeting and argued that Lombana, as party president, owes the country an explanation. Deputy Grace Hernandez drew a line between talking and deal-making: “One thing is to meet and talk, and quite another is to make a pact.” Deputy Ernesto Cedeno went further: “Let me be clear. If they know how to count, they should not count on me, in any amnesty project.”
What This Means for Panama
The revelation reshapes the early landscape ahead of the 2029 elections. Moca’s official denial of an alliance leaves the door open while acknowledging that conversations exist, and Pérez’s suggestion that Martinelli is now closer to Lombana than to President Mulino adds another layer of tension within the governing coalition’s orbit. Pérez noted that Mulino has repeatedly invited deputies to the presidency but has never invited the three Moca legislators, and remarked that if Mulino and Martinelli had a true friendship, Martinelli would not be in Bogota.
With Martinelli barred from office but still influential over Realizando Metas, and Lombana leading the party that finished second in 2024, whether these conversations harden into a formal alliance will be a defining question of the coming electoral cycle.
This story was originally reported by La Prensa.