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Peruvian interim president Manuel Merino resigns after five days in office. He resigned as head of state, Merino said in a televised speech Sunday. He responded to massive protests against the removal of his predecessor Martín Vizcarra and called for the resignation of parliament, which had convened for an emergency session on Sunday.
Parliament had Vizcarra removed from office on Monday after two and a half years in office on allegations of corruption. Parliamentary President Merino, of the center-right Popular Action party, assumed the highest position on a provisional basis. Since Tuesday, the youth of Peru have taken to the streets to protest Vizcarra’s disempowerment. At least two people died and about a hundred more were injured.
Merino asked for peace and unity. Nothing justifies the death of citizens in legitimate protests. However, groups that wanted to sow chaos also participated. Incidents must be investigated.
“Persistent moral incapacity”
All cabinet ministers have made their posts available, Merino said. They remained in their offices until the current uncertainty was overcome. It was not initially clear who would succeed Merino as president. Under no circumstances will there be a power vacuum, he said.
The predecessor Vizcarra was removed from his post by parliament last Monday for “permanent moral incompetence” with a clear majority of deputies. As governor of the Moquegua region, he is accused of accepting bribes from a construction company worth 2.3 million soles (about 533,000 euros) between 2011 and 2014. The non-party, 57, rejects the accusations. Vizcarra’s predecessor, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, resigned in 2018 over corruption allegations.
Conservative parliamentary president Merino took office as head of state and government on Tuesday and formed a new cabinet. Presidential and parliamentary elections are scheduled for April in the Andean country.
