MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Peru's Congress once again eyes presidential impeachment

The arrest of Boluarte's brother, Nicanor, seems to have tipped the scales downwards for the Peruvian president

Several Peruvian legislators this week announced separate vacancy motions to impeach President Dina Boluarte for permanent moral incapacity, in addition to the possibility that she may have violated the law. The parliamentarians argued that Boluarte had ignored the duties of her office by failing to account to Congress for her 12-day absence, which constituted a lack of transparency and fitness for that position.

Boluarte was nowhere to be found for 12 days in June 2023 during which it is speculated that she underwent cosmetic face surgery without notifying Congress. She is also considered to have exceeded her authority to cover up for his brother Nicanor, arrested days before for influence peddling.

Congresswomen Ruth Luque and Susel Paredes argued that every time a president obstructs a judicial investigation, the principle of independence, separation, and autonomy of government powers was affected.

In addition, Congresswoman Margot Palacios said that her bench would also request the dismissal of Boluarte before the plenary in the midst of the most recent scandal in which the Boluarte siblings were a criminal organization. “We are going to initiate the actions that correspond within our functions as political comptrollers,” she told reporters.

President Boluarte has been in the spotlight since she was photographed wearing expensive Rolex watches that appeared to exceed her income as a civil servant before she was elected vice president behind Pedro Castillo Terrones, who was ousted on December 7, 2022, after attempting to stage a coup, shutting down Congress and ruling by decree, resulting in her automatic promotion.

Luque insisted that “public opinion will have to know who are the congresspersons who begin to support a president clearly unfit for office” because each one “will have to answer politically for his or her decision”.

The legislator also pointed out that Boluarte has links with the Judiciary and the Prosecutor's Office, which would jeopardize the normal functioning of these institutions.

A motion of vacancy against Dina Boluarte would need 52 votes to be admitted for debate, it was explained. Only in 2024, two requests for impeachment were presented and finally rejected by the full Congress.

An Ipsos survey published in Lima this week showed that Boluarte had only 7% approval, compared to 88% disapproval. In addition, 85% of those polled considered Boluarte's government “weak”, while 11% found it “strong” and 4% did not answer. The research reached 1,201 people nationwide between May 9 and 10 with a margin of error of +/- 2.8%.

In a move that further discredited her persona, Boluarte signed Tuesday a decree establishing that transexual people were mentally ill. The measure consisted of an update of the State-sponsored Essential Health Insurance Plan (PEAS). The Health Ministry claimed that the labeling was intended to create a legal way to provide free psychological assistance to these people.