José Gerri, Peru’s eighth president in 10 years, was sworn in as president of Peru a month ago and has been tasked with providing institutional support for the country until elections next April. Peruvians will have the opportunity to elect a ninth person. … Partisan divisions, the insistence of some leaders to remain in politics are strongly questioned, and the continued emergence of corruption associated with past administrations suggest that if anything, Peru has a long way to go before it enters an era of solid stability. The amazing thing is that despite everything, this country is doing well economically. Society still functions despite politicians.
The shock of the decade began in mid-2016. Oranta Humala handed over the presidency to an economist Pedro Pablo Kuczynski. Accusations of corruption forced him to resign as vice president, a position he held for almost two years. Martin VizcarraAnd for the same reason, he had to be replaced by Congress President Manuel Merino, who was later also replaced by the new Congress President. Francisco Sagasti. Rural teacher Pedro Castillo won the 2021 election. Precisely because he was so far removed from Lima’s political circles, but given the difficulty of overcoming such torrents, he wanted to suspend Congress, so his vice president, Dina Bolarte, took office in a self-coup attempt. She was replaced by U.S. Congress President Jose Hari.
All of this could have been avoided if the “anti-Fujimorista” vote had not been imposed in 2016 and he had ruled once and for all. Keiko Fujimori Daughter of a Dictator In these elections, as in the 2011 and 2021 elections, the leader of Fuerza Popular came close to winning 50% of the vote in the second round. She did not win, as very different sectors voted for other candidates to prevent the Fujimonites from becoming president, but she remained strong enough in the unicameral parliament to crush the successes of other governments.
Fuerza Popular is losing seats, and votes are split among various parties, including the Popular Renewal Party, led by Rafael López Arriaga, who supported Keiko Fujimori in the past and is now mayor of Lima. In addition to running for both presidents, he is also running for vice president. Mario Vizcarrapromises to pardon his younger brother accused of corruption. Former President Kuczynski, 87, is running for the Senate with the aim of immunity (the Senate will be re-established), while Castillo party leader Vladimir Theronplans to run for election while on the run from the Justice Department. Faced with this situation, it is hard to imagine that Peru will be able to turn the page during this period of political instability.
What’s amazing about Peru is that this entire operetta takes place within a somewhat solid national economic context. Perhaps it is that the latter is forgiving the former, that politicians are taking their responsibilities lightly, knowing that the country will not collapse. Importantly, GDP growth is expected to be 3.3% in 2024 and 2.9% this year, which is also above the average for the region. Deficits and inflation are under control, and debt is only 32.1% of GDP, a very low number among countries. Only the unemployment rate is slightly higher at 6.5% of the active population, but this is incomplete data in terms of informality in Latin America.
Peru is not safe from changes in direction or the effects of political division and polarization
Since the time of Alberto Fujimori, the commitment to an open economy has been sustained over the past quarter century, regardless of the government at the time, ensuring continuity of the model and investment. Still, as populism grows in the region and attempts are made to return to nationalism, Peru cannot escape the effects of a change in direction and political division and polarization.
About The Author
