Peru’s President José Jerí after just four months in office has been ousted by Congress for failing to disclose meetings with Chinese businessmen.
The scandal unfolded last month after videos emerged of Jerí meeting several times outside his official schedule with businessman Zhihua Yang, who was under government scrutiny.
Jerí had previously apologised for the meetings, but denied any wrongdoing and accused his rivals of a public smear campaign.
There were 75 lawmakers who voted in favor of removing Jerí, while 24 voted against and three abstained.
Ruth Luque, one of the lawmakers who backed the censure measures, said she wanted to replace Jerí with a leader who would put public interest and security first, ahead of a new president coming into office.
His removal from office makes him the third consecutive president to be ousted, after he replaced former leader Dina Boluarte, who was impeached in October last year.
Jerí was Peru’s seventh president since 2016 amid a tumultuous political landscape that has seen a succession of leaders leave the post under contentious circumstances.
Peru’s Congress will vote today for its next interim president.
With yet another interim leader set to take over ahead of scheduled elections on April 12, the volatility risks deepening public distrust as legislators and politicians seek to posture themselves as presidential contenders.
