- Chilean President Sebastian Pinera survived Tuesday’s impeachment ballot.
- Despite the disclosure in the Pandora document, the Senate still gave the president a life-saving straw.
- The document links Piñera to the sale of Dominga.
The Chilean Senate on Tuesday refused to impeach President Sebastian Pinera over a business transaction disclosed in the Pandora document leak, and refused to file a lawsuit against him with the lower house of Congress.
The result of the voting was 24 votes in favor of impeachment, 18 votes against, and 1 abstention. Those who voted to accuse the billionaire president of corruption would need at least 29 votes to pass the measure.
Senator Francisco Chahuan from the center-right National Baath Party of Piñera said: “The defense has strongly refuted every fact put forward as the reason for this impeachment.”
Read | World leaders scramble to limit the damage of “Pandora Documents”
This means that the case has been closed and Piñera has not been punished for controversially selling a mining company in 2010, when he was serving as the first of two non-consecutive terms.
If impeached, Piñera could face up to five years in prison.
After making it clear mathematically that the legislators have gathered enough support for the president to avoid impeachment, applause can be heard from the headquarters of President Palacio de la Moneda, although there are still more than a dozen senators that need to be added Their own votes.
Dominga sale
The Pandora document highlights offshore transactions involving major political figures around the world.
They linked Piñera to Carlos Delano, a close friend of the president, who sold a mining company called Dominga for $152 million through a company owned by his children.
The newspaper said that most of the operations were carried out in the tax havens of the British Virgin Islands.
Opponents in Chile claim that Piñera benefited himself and his family through the information he obtained during his tenure.
It said that Piñera’s involvement pushed up the price.
The House of Representatives voted last week to initiate impeachment proceedings.
At that time, opposition MP Jaime Naranjo said:
As president, he benefited (himself) and his family in a direct way, and obtained the information he had while performing his duties.
Opposition members made a call to impeach Piñera in early October – he is in the final stages of his second term beginning in March 2018 – and apparently they spent 15 hours reading the accusations against the president last week. Two lawmakers have completed the isolation period and are still allowed to vote.
Pinera is one of the wealthiest people in Chile. He denied any wrongdoing and stated that he was cleared in the 2017 investigation of the transaction.
When the new investigation began in October, Piñera said he “completely believes that the court, as they have already done, will confirm that there is no violation and that I am completely innocent.”
This is the second impeachment case against Piñera. He had previously tried to remove Piñera in 2019 because of a brutal suppression of angry protesters in Chile, but the gap between the rich and the poor was widening, but it was unsuccessful.
Chileans will go to the polling station on November 21 to elect Piñera’s successor and new Congress before the end of the presidency in March.
We want to hear your opinion on the news. Subscribe to news 24 Be part of the dialogue in the comments section of this article.
