Peru Congress ousts finance minister in blow to president
LIMA, (Reuters) - Peru’s Congress dismissed the finance minister yesterday following revelations that he asked the comptroller to green light a controversial project, a fresh blow to centrist President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and his efforts to jumpstart the faltering economy.
The single-chamber Congress voted 88-11 against embattled Finance Minister Alfredo Thorne, who had asked for a vote of confidence amid threats of censure and resigned within hours of the outcome.
The vote ended the crisis over one of Kuczynski’s closest cabinet members, but the dispute further strained relations between the opposition-dominated Congress and the executive.
Lawmakers railed against Thorne for refusing to accept wrongdoing after an audio recording surfaced in which he appeared to ask the comptroller to approve a modification to a $520 million airport contract in exchange for a bigger budget.
Thorne, whom Kuczynski has defended, denied using funding for the comptroller’s office to try to secure a favorable review of the contract modification, which the government had promised to rescind on the comptroller’s recommendation.
The vote marked the first time in decades that Congress has rejected a finance minister - an embarrassing rebuke for Kuczynski after he campaigned on promises to strengthen the economy and clean up government as a former Wall Street banker and World Bank economist.