The head of the Peruvian parliament, Manuel Merino, assumed the post of president of the country on Tuesday, November 10, the day after the dismissal by this same parliament of former president Martin Vizcarra who questioned the “Legitimacy” of his successor.
“I swear by God, by the country and by all Peruvians that I will faithfully exercise” president, said Merino, a 59-year-old center-right agricultural engineer almost unknown to Peruvians, who becomes the Andean country’s third president since 2016.
Mr Vizcarra is replaced by the Speaker of Parliament, with the post of Vice-President vacant since Mercedes Araoz resigned unreplaced a year ago during a separate political crisis.
About thirty arrests
In the streets of the historic center of Lima, close to the parliament, some 600 police officers dispersed with tear gas groups of demonstrators hostile to the impeachment procedure, approved on Monday by 105 parliamentarians out of 130. About thirty demonstrators were arrested and several people injured, according to police and local media. Other protests took place in major cities across the country.
During his first speech to Parliament, Mr. Merino assured that his “First commitment (…) is to respect the current electoral process”. “No one can change the date of the elections scheduled for April 11, 2021”, he assured. He then called for the“Unit” National Council and promised he would step down on July 28, 2021, the day Mr. Vizcarra’s term was due to end.
Mr. Vizcarra, who announced on Monday that he would not obstruct his impeachment for “Moral incapacity”, questioned Tuesday “Legality and legitimacy” of the accession to power of the Speaker of Parliament. “I am worried, like many Peruvians, because an authority needs two basic principles and conditions to be able to exercise its authority: legality and legitimacy”said Mr. Vizcarra. Before adding:
“The legality is in question because the Constitutional Court has not yet ruled and the legitimacy is given by the people. “
The Constitutional Court is due to rule in December on the scope of “Moral incapacity” which targeted Mr. Vizcarra during a first impeachment motion, presented in September by the president of parliament but rejected by parliamentarians.
Mr. Vizcarra has also pledged to work with the prosecutor’s office in investigating allegations of alleged bribes he allegedly received as governor in 2014, charges he denies and which have served as argument in parliament to dismiss him.
“A coup in disguise”
For former Lima mayor and likely presidential candidate George Forsythe, the impeachment of Mr Vizcarra, who has a record level of popularity after his 32 months as head of the country, is akin to “A coup in disguise”. Former left-wing presidential candidate Veronika Mendoza said “Shameful and scandalous what happened in Congress”, while the Catholic Archbishop of Lima, Carlos Castillo, said Congress had not “The sense of proportion” by removing the president.
According to recent polls, 54% of Peruvians support Mr. Vizcarra and 78% believe the investigation into his corruption allegations should have waited until the end of his term.
Manuel Merino’s takeover has raised serious fears in the economic and financial sectors due to populist initiatives in parliament which analysts say would undermine Peru’s maintenance of macroeconomic balance. Especially since the Central Bank forecasts a drop of 12.5% of GDP in 2020 due to the pandemic. With 35,000 deaths, Peru is the country with the highest death rate in the world relative to its population. On Tuesday, the Lima Stock Exchange fell 6.5%.
