As of Friday, opposition lawmakers in Peru pushed through an impeachment hearing against current sitting President Martín Vizcarra. The hearing has been criticized as a hasty and poorly timed attempt to oust the current government during a critical time for global health due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although lawmakers appeared to be short of the two-thirds majority required to remove Vizcarra, analysts warned that he would not escape the incident without damage to his rule.
Vizcarra has been criticized for his credibility in carrying through an anti-corruption agenda and for his relationship with musician Richard Swing, which involves $50,000 in questionable contracts given to Swing by the Ministry of Culture for activities such as motivational speaking. Opposition members have found the transaction to be suspicious, as Swing is a little-known musician. Nevertheless, the impeachment attempts were poorly timed as Peru struggles to combat COVID-19 outbreaks and overwhelmed hospitals.
Read More: Peru president faces impeachment vote amid pandemic turmoil
