Paraguay’s New President Sworn In as Santiago Peña’s Impeachment and House Arrest Approved

According to a report by Reuters, Pedro Alliana has been sworn in as Paraguay’s new president, while his predecessor, Santiago Peña, has been placed under house arrest. Speaking outside Peña’s residence, prosecutors said the charges against him were still being determined but could include influence peddling. Peña had been ordered to appear at the prosecutor’s office on Saturday morning.

Paraguay’s Senate has decided to remove President Santiago Peña from office following impeachment proceedings against him over allegations surrounding the Ueno Bank scandal. In the Senate vote, all 44 senators present voted in favour of removing the president. According to local media reports, prosecutors have ordered the arrest of the ousted president on charges of breach of trust and other offences related to the collapse of Ueno Bank. The local newspaper ABC Color reported that the order was issued by a team of four prosecutors investigating the banking scandal and had been forwarded to the national police for implementation.

According to China’s Xinhua news agency, Peña faced allegations of conflicts of interest involving the private bank, changes to regulations and misuse of pension funds. Amid the crisis triggered by the intervention of officials in the Ueno Bank case, Peña submitted his resignation on Thursday. He is believed to have taken this step to avoid impeachment. The Senate voted 24–20 against his resignation, but the process could not be completed in a joint session of Congress because lawmakers left the chamber, preventing the required quorum from being met.

The Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Congress, had approved the impeachment charges against Peña, paving the way for a hearing against him in the Senate. Peña had requested additional time to present his defense, arguing that he had only been notified of the impeachment charges late on Thursday night.

The Senate later stated that Peña had failed to appear to present his defense, after which it began reviewing the evidence. However, his defense lawyers subsequently arrived at Congress. The president is facing impeachment proceedings following the collapse of Ueno Bank, which reportedly left around three million customers unable to withdraw money from their accounts. Under Paraguay’s Constitution, former presidents who were democratically elected are entitled to a lifetime seat in the Senate and parliamentary immunity, provided they have not been found guilty in an impeachment trial. Consequently, Peña has lost these privileges following his removal from office.