Peru Congress selects centrist lawmaker to be new leader
Lima, Peru — Peru’s political crisis appeared on the verge of resolution Monday as Congress cleared the way for an elder statesman and consensus candidate to become the country’s third president in a week.
People waved the nation’s red-andwhite flag and blared horns on the streets of Peru’s capital as Francisco Sagasti of the centrist Purple Party was selected as the new president of Congress.
The 76-year-old engineer has not yet been sworn into office but as head of Congress becomes the nation’s chief of state by default. Peru currently has no president or vice president, making him next in line.
It will now fall on Sagasti to heal a nation bruised by a week of upheaval.
“What’s at stake is taking a first step toward rebuilding confidence between the people and the state,” said Samuel Rotta, president of the Peruvian chapter of Transparency International.
Applause erupted in the legislative palace as Sagasti clinched the required majority vote. A respected academic, he has also spent decades consulting government institutions and held a post at the World Bank. Shortly after the vote, he took an oath to become Congress’ president.
“We will do everything possible to return hope to the people and show them they can trust in us,” he said in his first remarks.
The Latin American nation’s political turmoil took a chaotic turn Sunday when interim leader Manuel Merino quit and Congress couldn’t decide on his replacement. That left Peru rudderless and in crisis less than a week after legislators ignited a storm of protest by removing President Martín Vizcarra, an anti-corruption crusader highly popular among Peruvians.
Using a 19th- century- era clause, legislators accused Vizcarra of “permanent moral incapacity,” saying he took over $630,000 in bribes in exchange for two construction contracts while governor of a small province years ago.