Catholic Church demands restitution of savings following Ueno Bank collapse in Paraguay
The bishop of Caacupé denounced the impact of the banking fraud on vulnerable families. Nearly three million users lost access to their deposits.
Paraguayan Church pressures new government over Ueno Bank funds
The Catholic Church of Paraguay demanded on Sunday 8 November the immediate return of savings to those affected by the Ueno Bank collapse, according to telesurtv.net. The banking crisis, which resulted in the removal of former president Santiago Peña, left nearly three million savers with their deposits frozen.
During the Sunday homily at the Basilica of Caacupé, bishop Ricardo Valenzuela denounced that the manoeuvre seriously affected working families and the most vulnerable sectors of society, whose resources to cover basic needs were completely immobilised. Valenzuela warned that the political measures adopted so far are insufficient if the new executive does not guarantee the complete return of deposits or impose sanctions on those responsible for the fraud.
The Archbishopric of Asunción also issued a statement pointing to the deep popular indignation and discontent of young people at the corruption of the financial system. The ecclesiastical hierarchy stressed that the government of Pedro Alliana cannot act under a false institutional normality while impunity persists over the embezzlement of Paraguayan public assets.
Scale of damage: retirees, Itaipú and state funds
The failure of Ueno Bank affected the accounts of 2,940,000 users in a country of 6,100,000 inhabitants. Among the affected institutions is the Social Security Institute (IPS), the country's main pension fund, with approximately 32,000 retirees affected, as well as funds belonging to the binational Itaipú dam, whose capital was transferred to the private entity with knowledge of its imminent insolvency.
The investigation determined the existence of systematic diversions of state funds to Ueno Bank, despite the fact that the authorities at the time knew of the firm's impending bankruptcy situation. This finding was the basis of the impeachment trial that resulted in Peña's removal for poor performance of his duties.
Peña to preventive detention; Alliana assumes the presidency
The Senate found Santiago Peña guilty of misappropriation of public resources deposited at the banking entity. Following the revocation of his mandate, Peña was transferred on Saturday 7 November to preventive detention by judicial order, after being formally charged with the offences of breach of trust and self-dealing administration.
Former vice-president Pedro Alliana assumed the head of state position on an interim basis and will complete the constitutional mandate until 15 August 2028, together with senator Antonio Barrios as vice-president. His swearing-in took place amid the institutional collapse caused by the failure and Central Bank of Paraguay intervention on Ueno Bank. Alliana had promised to offer guarantees to the defrauded sectors, although segments of the citizenry question the legitimacy of his investiture and point to continuity with the previous administration.
Alliana reaffirms alignment with Washington
In his first official statements, Alliana ratified his commitment to deepening the strategic alliance with the United States government. Through a message directed at the Washington diplomatic representation in Asunción, the new head of state thanked United States support and reaffirmed the political alignment of his administration with the White House.
Despite the severity of the crisis and the arrest of the former president, the Paraguayan Foreign Ministry issued an official statement in which it asserted that the nation emerged strengthened from the situation, seeking to project an image of institutional stability to the outside world.
Source: Google News PY — Crime