Paraguayan President Santiago Peña said he would cooperate with investigations into the collapse of Ueno Bank as lawmakers considered his resignation. (Foto: Instagram)
Paraguayan President Santiago Peña said Thursday, Nov. 5, that he would make himself available to authorities to answer questions about his relationship to the Ueno Bank scandal. He made the statement on X during a congressional session considering his resignation.
Hours before the vote, Peña had announced he would leave the presidency as an impeachment effort advanced in Congress. The political crisis followed the collapse of Ueno Bank, one of Paraguay’s largest digital banks. The country’s central bank suspended the institution’s operations.
In a letter to the Paraguayan public, Peña said he would exercise his right to defend himself and cooperate with the institutions investigating the matter. He said he would provide requested information so the events could be clarified and anyone found to have committed wrongdoing could be held accountable. “I will fully cooperate with the competent institutions so that what happened is clarified, responsibilities are established, and anyone who broke the law answers to justice,” he wrote.
Peña also argued that reimbursing customers affected by the banking crisis should proceed regardless of the outcome of the political process against him. He said debate over whether he would remain in office should not delay solutions for families seeking to recover their deposits. “The payment to depositors cannot be left unresolved because of what happens to me,” he said, adding that the dispute over his continued tenure should not halt measures needed by affected families.
In the letter, Peña said his priority had been to advance, within the law and in coordination with the responsible institutions, steps to help depositors recover their money. He said investigating what happened and resolving payments were obligations that should move forward at the same time, and neither should be used to postpone the other. He urged the public to remain calm, saying citizens’ concerns deserved a respectful response, clear information and concrete action. He added that he would act responsibly and in accordance with the Constitution, whatever the outcome of the process.
