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If the Colorado Party continued in government, Paraguay would “become the regional centre of drug trafficking”, Martín Burt, a member of the opposition alliance who plans to run as a presidential candidate in next year’s race, said in August.
Cartes continues to wield considerable influence in the ruling party. The businessman has been on the radar of law enforcement officials for more than a decade. The US singled out a bank owned by Cartes as an alleged money laundering centre in a 2009 state department cable published in 2010 by WikiLeaks. In 2019, Brazil sought his extradition in connection with a money-laundering probe. The request was later dropped. Cartes has denied all allegations of criminal activity.
A spokesperson for Cartes, who is running to become Colorado Party chairman, blamed criticism on rivalry ahead of the 2023 polls, saying: “Political opponents are using all sort of fake or biased news to try to discredit [Colorado Party candidates], including the recurrent argument that Cartes is a threat to political stability.”
The vice-president is considered an ally of President Mario Abdo Benítez and is reportedly his preferred presidential candidate. Following the US move, Velázquez said he would resign. But he has since backtracked, arguing the Washington designation had no criminal consequences.
However, Paraguay’s attorney-general Sandra Quinonez late in August announced that her office had opened a criminal investigation into Velázquez to probe the US allegations.
The issue is starting to resonate with the electorate. About 70 per cent of respondents in a June survey for left-leaning think-tank Celag cited corruption alongside the economy as a leading worry. Some 91 per cent disapproved of the president’s handling of the fight against corruption.
“There’s broad discontent among voters that the contraband image of the country has returned with greater force due to drug trafficking,” said Nakayama, “This could play a part in the election.”
Additional reporting by Michael Stott in London
This article has been amended since first publication to make clear that Hugo Velázquez is considered an ally of the president
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Publish date : 2022-09-13 03:00:00
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