Media pressure and recent information about the President José Jerí —among them the revelation of his hidden birthday party in Cieneguilla, thrown by Peru21 last Sunday—ended up tipping the balance in favor of an extraordinary plenary session. The benches of Alliance for Progress (APP) and Podemos Peru (PP) had no choice but to sign the document calling for a plenary session during the legislative recess to debate and vote on the seven motions of censure and one motion for vacancy against the president for his clandestine meetings with Chinese businessmen, including his friend Zhihua Yang.
With the support of APP and Podemos, 28 signatures would be added to the 63 that had already been collected since last January 21 and the barrier of 78 signatures required for the call to an extraordinary plenary session would be easily overcome. The truth is, however, that until the closing of this edition there were only 72 signatures because many members of the parliamentary blocs of César Acuña and José Luna Gálvez had not signed their signatures.
Jerí’s secret birthday party in 2024, attended by Isabel Cajo and the late Andrea Vidal, would have ended up sidelining both politicians and pushing them to endorse the extra plenary session to speed up the debate on the motions.
ORANGE SHIELD
The congressman and owner of Podemos José Luna Gálvez, in a press conference, argued that from the beginning “I have asked President Jerí to step aside.” “We have spoken with the congressmen of our caucus so that they can immediately make their decision and proceed with the signing. They are already signing (the document of the Extraordinary Plenary Session),” he alleged.
Almost at the same time, APP spokesperson Eduardo Salhuana and his colleague Lady Camones indicated that they would support calling Jerí to Congress; However, none of them anticipated whether they would vote in favor of the motions.
After this decision, only two benches have sided with the citizen demand: Somos Perú, José Jerí’s pro-government group, and Fuerza Popular where, it emerged, there would be some legislators in favor of the extraordinary plenary session, but they do not have the endorsement of their leader Keiko Fujimori, at least not yet.
ZHIHUA YANG CUMS
Meanwhile, the Congressional Oversight Commission took the statement of Chinese citizen Ji Wu Xiaodong, who was summoned to explain his meeting with the head of state despite having a house arrest order. Zhihua Yang, a former friend of Jerí, was also summoned, but did not attend, claiming immunity due to immigration status and indicating that he would prioritize his statement before the Public Ministry.
Xiaodong, for his part, confirmed his participation in the December 26 dinner at a chifa in San Borja, but assured that his role was strictly technical and supporting his friend Zhihua Yang, who despite living in Peru for years—he assured—does not master technical Spanish.
The investigator also contradicted versions of the Executive. “I do speak Spanish, the president must be confused with some chifa staff,” he commented, adding that he did not have formal authorization from the Chinese Embassy to coordinate official events.
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