The debate acquired unprecedented characteristics for various reasons, which began with the presence of Castillo, who spoke for a quarter of an hour and then asked permission to withdraw to fulfill commitments on his agenda, which was authorized by the president of Congress, María del Carmen Alva, as an “exception”.
“The vacancy motion is due to permanent moral incapacity but it does not contain a single element that validly supports it, it is a compilation of versions from a sector of the press,” Castillo said.
The president appeared wearing the presidential sash and accompanied by half a dozen ministers, two events that were highlighted as unprecedented in similar debates, according to local television station RPP.
Another novelty was the presence of three officials from the Organization of American States (OAS) to observe the debate, allowed this morning by the Congress authorities at the request of the Foreign Ministry, according to a document to which Télam had access.
Once Castillo left, his lawyer, José Félix Palomino, began to speak out, but a few minutes later the session was interrupted because Congresswoman Vivian Olivos, from the Fujimori Popular Force party, placed a banner on the desk of her bench that read “Vacancia already” and refused to take it back.
Alva called a meeting of block heads that lasted 40 minutes, after which the session was resumed, in which Palomino responded to each of the “seven assumptions reported in the vacancy motion.”
The incident was condemned by the vice president of the republic, Dinah Boluarte, and by legislator Susel Paredes, from the Purple Party, a center opposition party.
“The country demands a democratic spirit from us even in the political discrepancy, we reject the impasse that arose in the debate on the vacancy in Congress as a result of a lack of respect for the presidential investiture by the Popular Force,” said Boluarte On twitter.
“Because of these facts, the citizenry rejects Congress; a provocative opposition and a government party that falls flat on provocation,” Paredes said on the same social network.
In the meantime, the third vice president of parliament, Patricia Chirinos, from the right-wing party Avanza País and one of the main promoters of the president’s removal, told the press that she was preparing to hand over the OAS members “the folder ( folder) of the corruption of Pedro Castillo”.
Chirinos added that when Castillo arrived at Congress and greeted his authorities, he told him “for the good of the country, resign and submit to justice, so that democracy can continue in Peru.”
Meanwhile, the television showed images of Abancay Avenue, next to the Congress, whose road was shared by hundreds of pro-government supporters and opponents barely separated by a police cordon, and the chroniclers did not rule out disturbances.
The tension did not diminish after Palomino’s presentation, when the legislators’ debate was to begin.
Two votes then took place, the first of which enabled Castillo’s ministers to participate in the debate – by regulation they were granted two minutes each – and the second, to discount the time assigned to the bench of the ruling party Peru Libre. the one used by executive officials.
After the vote, the last measure was questioned by some members of Congress and the session went back to a fourth quarter.
Finally, shortly after 6:00 p.m. (8:00 p.m. in Argentina) the debate of the congressmen began.
Earlier, Castillo had been confident that this second impeachment attempt against him would fail and that this “closes” a stage, so that the Executive and the Legislature can “continue working together.”
“We have been democratically elected by the popular will at the polls and we are not going to let you down; we hope that this page will be closed today and we will continue working together,” Castillo said at a school event.
He said that his task in the educational area will continue until the last day of his mandate and, assuming that the vacancy motion will not prosper, he said that that last day will be July 28, 2026.
Everything indicated that the necessary votes (87 out of 130 total seats) would not be reached for the president to be removed from the head of state.
The nine bench leaders were expected to make a statement (10 minutes each) and then begin a free debate that could take several hours.
The opposition has 80 legislators but it did not seem that all of them were going to support Castillo’s departure, who, moreover, still has the support of some 50 seats among the ruling Free Peru and allies.
Yes Castle was dismissed will be replaced by the vice president boluarte, although if she gives up, it will be up to the opposition Alva, of the Popular Action party, from the center, to assume the position.
Today’s is the second vacancy motion against Castle, who assumed the presidency in July 2021 after winning a tight ballot over Keiko Fujimori, because last December Congress already rejected a similar measure, although it was then rejected before being debated by the plenary.
This new debate was reached because two weeks ago Congress decided to take Castillo to a lightning impeachment trial by 76 votes, 41 against and one abstention.
The president has already had to change his cabinet three times, highly questioned by the legislature.
The possibility of dismissing the president of the republic for the constitutional cause of permanent moral incapacity registers several close antecedents.
President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski successfully raffled off a motion in December 2017 and resigned in March 2018 to avoid being removed from office in a similar one.
His successor, Martín Vizcarra, faced two vacancy motions in September and November 2020. He passed the first and was dismissed in the second.
Source: Ambito
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
