Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, who is at the helm of affairs following the removal of her predecessor, will change the prime minister as part of a reshuffling of her Cabinet, she said on Sunday.
Dina Boluarte took over as the president from her previous position of vice president earlier this month after her predecessor Pedro Castillo was impeached and removed from office and later arrested for attempting to illegally dissolving Congress.
Her office tenure, which began recently, witnessed political roughness and massive protests which killed 20 people and six more killed in violence linked to road blockades, authorities said.
The worst demonstrations to hit the Andean nation in years pose a threat to the economy and political stability of Peru, harming investor confidence in the second biggest copper producer in the world.
The Cabinet reshuffle will happen on Monday and Tuesday, Boluarte told America Television’s news program “Cuarto Poder” on Sunday. Her education and culture ministers resigned due to deaths during the protests, after which she took the decision of reshuffling her cabinet.
Boluarte stated in a news conference on Saturday that the decision was driven by a need “to be able to install knowledgeable ministers in each sector.”
She did not point out directly at a potential replacement for Pedro Angulo, who’s tenure as prime minister is only a week-old.
“No one can have a minister who will learn on the job,” Boluarte said. “This is a transition government, we need to act fast.”
Boluarte also said that the new Cabinet, which will work with the opposition-led Congress, will be “a little more political.”
“We’ll be reshaping the cabinet, maybe it will be a more technical Cabinet, but also one that’s a little more political to be able to create these bridges for dialogue,” Boluarte said.
Former President Castillo regularly quarreled with Congress, which led two unsuccessful impeachment trials against him but after his attempt to disband Congress, the impeached was passed the third time successfully.
Castillo, who is under a pre-trial detention for 18 months as charges of rebellion and conspiracy are being investigated, has accused Congress of being led by Peru’s elites and provoking him.
Since his ouster, protestors – some supporters of Castillo, the former teacher and son of peasant farmers, others unhappy with the current government – have taken to the streets, blocking roads and shuttering some major airports for days.
Peruvians have a very negative opinion of Congress because they believe it to be corrupt and self-serving. According to pollster Datum, only 11% of people are satisfied with the parliament.
