Paraguayan President Removed From Office Over Bank Collapse Placed Under House Arrest – Criminal Investigation Launched Against Peña
Santiago Peña was unanimously removed by parliament after the collapse of Ueno Bank affected three million depositors. The removed president has been placed under house arrest.
Paraguayan President Placed Under House Arrest Following Ueno Bank Collapse
Following BBC reporting, Telex has reported that Santiago Peña, president of Paraguay, has been suspended from office and placed under house arrest following the collapse of Ueno Bank. Peña held a stake in the company that owned the bank until the end of last year.
Peña was taken into custody on Friday, immediately after the 45-member senate voted 44 to 1 to remove him through constitutional proceedings. A single senator abstained. Senate President Basilio Núñez subsequently announced that Peña had been found guilty of "dereliction of duty in his official capacity".
Vice President Pedro Alliana has temporarily assumed the presidency, and will hold the position until 2028. "My fellow citizens, who are now going through a difficult period as a consequence of the financial collapse, will receive full compensation," Alliana said.
Peña offered his resignation on Thursday, but rather than accept it, senators launched constitutional proceedings against him. In the course of the proceedings, he was charged with abuse of office, as a result of which he lost his parliamentary immunity. The president denies committing any violation; in his Thursday address to the nation, he apologised and stated that he never intended to betray the trust placed in him.
According to the charges, Peña found himself in a conflict-of-interest situation, manipulated regulatory oversight, diverted pension fund money, and participated in institutional-level cover-up involving the central bank. According to Paraguayan prosecutor Silvia Margarita Gonzalez Vester, Peña will be questioned on Saturday on suspicion of abuse of trust, bribery, and misappropriation of funds. According to analysts, the case will be followed by court proceedings. Ricardo Preda, the removed president's defence lawyer, described the charges levelled as "reckless accusations", "irresponsible and opportunistic".
Due to the collapse of Ueno Bank, nearly half of Paraguay's population has been unable to access their savings after the country's central bank froze them. Approximately three million depositors – including pensioners – remain cut off from their savings. The situation has led to mass protests across the country, particularly in the capital Asunción.
Ueno has approximately three million customers, which represents 60 per cent of the South American country's adult population; the bank manages 800–850 million dollars. OTP Bank acquired a financial investment stake of less than 10 per cent in the institution for 47 million dollars, though this did not give it any management or administrative rights.
Source: Telex