Peru’s political crisis has escalated dramatically as Congress voted to remove interim President José Jerí from office merely four months into his tenure. The impeachment stems from his failure to disclose multiple unofficial meetings with Chinese businessman Zhihua Yang, who was under government investigation at the time of their encounters.
The controversy, dubbed ‘Chifa-gate’ by local media after Peruvian-Chinese restaurants, erupted when security footage revealed Jerí conducting off-the-record meetings with Yang—a business magnate with state energy concessions. One particularly damaging video showed the president wearing a hooded top during a late-night visit to one of Yang’s establishments. Compounding the scandal, another attendee at these meetings was a Chinese national under house arrest for alleged connections to illegal timber operations.
Peruvian law mandates thorough documentation of all presidential activities, yet Jerí maintained no records of these controversial encounters. Despite offering a public apology for the meetings, the former leader vehemently denied any wrongdoing and characterized the impeachment as a politically motivated smear campaign by rivals.
The congressional vote concluded decisively with 75 lawmakers supporting impeachment against 24 opponents. Ruth Luque, one of the supporting legislators, emphasized the need for leadership prioritizing public interest, stating: ‘We ask to end this agony so we can truly create the transition citizens are hoping for—not a transition with hidden interests, influence-peddling, secret meetings and hooded figures.’
Jerí’s removal continues Peru’s alarming pattern of political instability, making him the third consecutive president to be ousted and the seventh since 2016. His predecessor, Dina Boluarte, was impeached last October following a tumultuous tenure marked by widespread protests, corruption scandals, and escalating gang violence.
The interim administration faced immediate challenges upon taking power, with youth-led demonstrations against political corruption and crime turning violent within days of Jerí’s appointment, resulting in one fatality and over 100 injuries.
With the attorney general having launched a corruption investigation and presidential approval ratings plummeting, pressure for Jerí’s resignation had been mounting steadily. Congress is scheduled to vote on Wednesday for a new interim leader while the nation prepares for general elections in April, hoping to establish stable governance after years of political chaos.