Peru opp moves to force out President over payments

Bloomberg

Opposition lawmakers began an effort to force Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski out of office after he rebuffed calls to resign over his ties to companies that received payments from disgraced Brazilian builder Odebrecht SA.
Congressmen from three parties presented a motion to remove the center-right president on the grounds of moral incapacity. The unicameral Congress will hold an initial vote whether to accept the motion and may make a final decision Dec 21, Speaker Luis Galarreta told reporters.
Peru’s currency and bonds slumped amid concern that the 79-year-old veteran of Wall Street might be forced out after only 16 months heading one of Latin America’s fastest-growing economies.
Since Brazil-based Odebrecht admitted bribing officials in several nations in the so-called Carwash case, a
corruption investigation has rocked Peru’s establishment and damped economic growth.
The probe has implicated former presidents, government officials and businessmen,
and prosecutors are looking into Kuczynski’s role in a
highway contract awarded to Odebrecht when he was a
government minister.
Efforts to reach Kuczynski weren’t immediately successful, but the president took to state television to opposition claims that he received payments as a public official. He promised to allow investigators to examine his bank accounts.
The prospect of the president’s removal sapped demand for the Peruvian currency.