Premier Salvador del Solar and the 18 members of his cabinet will be in Congress today to call for a vote of confidence and for congressional action and support of the political and justice reforms presented by the Executive.
President Vizcarra, in Tacna yesterday to launch an agricultural development program, said this week is “crucial and decisive” for the country’s future and for democracy, to implement the reforms that can insure a “better political class” and prevent a repeat of serious cases of corruption both in the Congress and the justice system.
The vote of confidence is intended to confront the Congress, where the Fujimorista majority of Fuerza Popular (Popular Force) has dragged its feet on a series of judicial and electoral reforms the President proposed in August last year and on political reforms presented in March this year.
The President has stressed the urgency of the reforms. Four of the bills —to ensure a better framework and stronger guardrails are in place before the presidential elections in April 2021— require constitutional amendments. These amendments require two consecutive legislative sessions and any changes to the electoral process must be in place a year before the elections.
One of the key justice reform proposals is that the judiciary have the authority to lift parliamentary immunity if a member of Congress is to be investigated or charged of a crime. Currently, immunity can only be lifted by Congress itself, which has led to flagrant abuses over the past three years. The original proposal was tabled last month by a congressional commission chaired by Rosa Bartra of Fuerza Popular.
“A fundamental part of the political reform has been selected, and this should be debated and approved without distorting its meaning. Our country deserves a true political reform,” Del Solar said when he presented his request to Congress at the end of last week.
If the Congress decides against a vote of confidence, President Vizcarra has the right to close Congress and call for new elections. This because it is the second time the Executive has requested a vote of confidence — the first request, in September 2017, was denied, forcing the resignation of Premier Fernando Zavala and his cabinet, ony 14 months into Pedro Pablo Kuczynski’s presidency. It also forced the resignation of two Education ministers. The congressional majority continued its battles against the Executive until it forced Kuczynski’s resignation barely seven months later.
Fujimoristas argue that closing Congress is not an option because Vizcarra’s presidency is a new government. However, Vizcarra was Kuczynski’s vice-president and was sworn in to continue the 2016-2021 presidential term.
Whether or not the vote of confidence is given this week, Del Solar has set a June 15 deadline for Congress to approve the proposed reforms. His argument is that if Congress cannot approve the reforms by then, he will undertand that to mean a vote of no confidence.
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