Paraguay's Senate removes President Peña in impeachment trial
Senators found him guilty of poor performance, unanimously among those present, and ousted him. His resignation was never accepted.
Paraguay's Senate removed President Santiago Peña from office on Friday. Sitting as a court, senators found him guilty of poor performance of his duties and separated him from the post "by full right."
The roll-call vote was unanimous among the senators present. Basilio Núñez, the chamber's president, presided.
Peña did not show up. The Senate had refused him 72 more hours to prepare his defense, and his lawyers, Adolfo Ferreiro and Ricardo Preda, stood in for him. They argued the trial was void: the president had already resigned, so Congress had lost jurisdiction. The Senate went ahead without accepting the resignation.
Seven lower-house deputies carried the prosecution. "We ask that he be removed today," prosecutor Rocío Vallejo said.
The case grew out of the collapse of Ueno Bank, a digital bank whose resolution the central bank began on Nov. 3. Peña was a partner in the group that owned it until 2025. The Chamber of Deputies approved the charges with 78 votes.
Paraguay is a member of Mercosur, the South American trade bloc with which Mexico negotiates its trade relations.
Unlike an accepted resignation, a conviction costs Peña the lifetime Senate seat the constitution grants former presidents and leaves him more exposed to criminal proceedings.
