Paraguay Senate Denies President Impeachment Trial Delay

Paraguay’s Senate voted Friday to reject President Santiago Pena’s request for a 72-hour delay to prepare his defence, forcing his impeachment trial to proceed immediately.

Senate President Basilio Nunez confirmed the decision after Pena failed to secure the necessary votes, announcing that the Senate would summon the 47-year-old president for proceedings starting Friday.

Pena had offered his resignation on Thursday following a massive banking scandal.

Still, Congress put his resignation on hold to pursue impeachment, which would strip him of the lifetime Senate immunity an ordinary resignation provides.

The crisis erupted Tuesday when the Central Bank intervened in Ueno Bank over solvency failures, freezing the accounts of roughly three million customers—nearly half the nation’s population.

Pena previously held shares in Grupo Vasquez, the majority owner of Ueno, until selling his stake in 2025.

The Attorney General’s Office launched an investigation into Pena regarding his supervision of the bank and the placement of public funds, while Central Bank President Carlos Carvallo resigned and authorities issued arrest warrants for eight Ueno executives.

Pena denounced the Senate’s rapid timeline on X, arguing that receiving a 15-page indictment with 300 pages of appendices late Thursday denied him due process.

Despite Pena’s public apology stating he never intended to betray public trust, thousands of demonstrators marched for a third straight night in Asuncion to demand the immediate return of their deposits, Pena’s removal, and criminal prosecution.