LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peru's Congress was set to vote Tuesday on a motion to remove interim President José Jerí as prosecutors look intoallegations of corruption involving unreported meetingsbetween Jerí and two Chinese businessmen.
If the legislators secure a majority, Jerí will be ousted from the presidency a mere four months into his term. His removal would trigger yet another transition, forcing the legislature to appoint a new leader and marking a volatile new chapter in Peruvian politics just two months before national elections.
Jerí is the seventh president to lead the nation in the past decade. Hewas sworn into office in October, after his predecessor was ousted by Congress over corruption allegations and a rise in violent crime. He now faces removal from office from his former colleagues in Congress, who have accused him of misconduct and lack of capacity to carry out his presidential duties.
The 39-year-old interim president said he was hopeful he would survive the vote.
"I'm not dead yet," Jerí said during an interview over the weekend on Peruvian television Panamericana, insisting he would continue to serve the people of Peru until his "last day" in the presidential palace.
If he is removed from office, the legislators will choose a new president from among their members to govern until July 28, when he the interim leader will hand over the office to the winner of the April 12 presidential election.
In turn, Jerí will return to his position as a legislator until July 28, when the new Congress also takes office.
It is also possible that the legislators will not vote for removal. The president is supported by the Fuerza Popular party, led bypresidential candidate Keiko Fujimorithe daughter of a former president who was imprisoned for human rights abuses.
The accusations against Jerí stem from a leaked report regarding a clandestine December meeting with two Chinese executives. One attendee holds active government contracts, while the other is currently under investigation for alleged involvement in an illegal logging operation.
Jerí has denied wrongdoing. He said he met the executives to organize a Peruvian-Chinese festivity, but his opponents have accused him of corruption.
The crisis is the latest chapter in a prolonged political collapse in a country that has seenseven presidents since 2016, and is about to hold a general election amid widespread public outcry over a surge in violent crime.
Despite a revolving door of presidents, Peru's economy has remained stable.
The Andean nation had an external debt to gross domestic product ratio of 32% in 2024, one of the lowest in Latin America, and the government has welcomed foreign investment in areas like mining and infrastructure.
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