Panama Votes: Frustrated Panamanians head to polls amid low expectations

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02:41

Voters in Panama head to the polls on Sunday to pick their next president. Nearly three million people are eligible to vote, but many are frustrated and expect little to change. CGTN's Roee Ruttenberg has more.

It's hard to ignore the economic boom in Panama. The Central American nation boasts the region's highest annual growth rate. But wages for many have stagnated. Last year, construction workers walked off the job for a month-long strike.

An hour outside of the capital, there's little sign of this country's wealth. Augustina Villareal raises her seven children in this illegally-built tin-roof home.

AUGUSTINA VILLAREAL MOTHER "What the next government should do is go to these communities, they should visit us, and get us running water, electricity, and roads. That's what these communities need."

ROEE RUTTENBERG LA CHORRERA, PANAMA "Much of Panama's countryside lacks infrastructure. That's a frustration among rural voters. They say Panama's almost exclusive focus on its finance-hub sector means their needs are often ignored."

Farmers also say they face more and more obstacles to growth. They accuse corrupt politicians of favoring imports at their expense.

Efren Ortiz operates one of Panama's biggest pig farms. He says he can't compete with frozen pork products brought in from the U.S.

EFREN ORTIZ PIG FARMER "I think there needs to be a consensus between the government and the farmers. Without it, a lot of people will be affected, and we'll lose the producing-sector of our country. And a country that has no farms won't be able to feed its people."

The leading candidates in Sunday's presidential vote have all promised to address these issues.

Laurentio 'Nito' Cortizo - of the centrist PRD - has vowed to strengthen government services to the country's most-needy. And he's promised to tackle corruption.

So, too, has Romulo Roux - from the center-right CD. He's backed by Ricardo Martinelli, a popular former president who's in prison awaiting trial on charges of political espionage.

And then there's the wild card. Ricardo Lombana - an independent. He's pledged to up-end the whole political system in favor of small government.

Panama City's mayor, Jose Blandon, is the candidate from President Juan Carlos Varela's Panamenista party. He hasn't been endorsed by the President, nor even been seen with him. He and three others are polling quite low.

That may be less about them, and more a reflection of voter apathy cynicism over what the future holds. Roee Ruttenberg, CGTN, in La Chorrera, Panama.