Paraguay’s Congress has put President Santiago Peña’s resignation on hold while impeachment proceedings advance, leaving him in office for now, according to Euronews. The move comes as thousands of protesters demonstrate over a banking scandal that has frozen savers’ funds.
Euronews reports that Peña has tendered his resignation, but Congress has suspended its acceptance while the impeachment process moves forward. Protesters are demanding that Peña face impeachment rather than be allowed to resign, according to Africanews.
Al Jazeera reports that lawmakers have voted to impeach Peña amid a banking collapse that has roiled the country. The sources do not agree on where the process stands. Euronews describes the proceedings as still moving forward, while Al Jazeera describes a completed vote. The vote count, the chamber involved and the next steps have not been confirmed.
The central grievance behind the protests is the freezing of savers’ funds at Ueno Bank, according to Euronews. The outlet reports that three million bank customers have been frozen out of their accounts. Africanews puts the effect differently, saying the scandal has left nearly half the population without access to their savings. The two figures have not been reconciled in the reporting.
Euronews says that a resignation would give Peña a seat as senator for life and immunity. According to the same outlet, that prospect fuelled demands for impeachment instead.
Euronews reports that protesters included families and young people, and that police monitored the gatherings in public squares. Demonstrators displayed an effigy of Peña and set fire to an image of him. One protester held a football shirt with the Ueno Bank logo crossed out. Graffiti calling for political leaders to step down has also appeared, Euronews reports. The outlet describes the situation as a deepening financial and institutional crisis.
The sources do not say when or where the protests took place beyond the public squares described by Euronews. They also do not include any response from Peña, his government or the bank. Details on what caused the collapse and how regulators have responded are also absent.
The Africanews and Al Jazeera reports were available only as a headline and short excerpt, and neither was read in full. The Euronews account is the main source for most of the details in this story.
What happens next is likely to turn on several points. Readers should watch for the progress of Congress’s impeachment proceedings against Peña. They should also watch for whether his resignation is formally accepted or blocked. Any government move to restore frozen savings will also be important, as the funds are at the centre of the protests.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.