In Surprise #Impeachment Vote, #Peru President Ousted by Congress

#Peru's President Vizcarra Ousted in Surprise Impeachment Vote by congress 5 months before elections. 

Vizcarra is accused of taking 2.3 million soles ($641,000) in bribes from companies building infrastructure projects in the Moquegua region, where he was governor from 2011 to 2014. He denies receiving kickbacks and reiterated that he's ready to cooperate with prosecutors investigating the case.

The president's position was weakened in the last few hours after several local media outlets published excerpts of text messages between him and a former cabinet minister in which they appear to discuss meeting with construction executives alleged to have paid him bribes. 

The reports said the text messages also suggest that he may have had contacts with the opposition during an attempt to impeach his predecessor Pedro Pablo Kuczynski in 2018, something which he has denied. 

In a statement from his office, Vizcarra said the reports showed nothing illegal and are designed to damage the population's trust in his government.

See the whole story here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-10/peru-president-ousted-after-losing-impeachment-vote-in-congress

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