PERU

On March 5 the President of Peru, Pedro Castillo, appointed Nicolás Bustamante as the new Minister of Transport and Communications (MTC in Spanish), replacing Juan Silva. The former minister resigned on February 28, after businesswoman Karelim López accused him of being a member of a criminal network in charge of directing public works. Until this appointment, Bustamante was the general secretary of the transport portfolio and was also the director of the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Office of the MTC. The new minister is already in office.

The new head of the transport and communications portfolio is a lawyer and has been registered with the Lambayeque Bar Association since 2006. Bustamante’s professional career in the public sector began in 2003, when he served as head of the auxiliary services supply unit of the Provincial Municipality of Cuteravo. He also has some political experience, given that in 2017 he was part of the Frente Esperanza group, which had Fernando Olivera as its main head.

Bustamante is also part of the MTC officials with serious questions. As revealed by the journalistic program Panorama, the new Minister of Transports would have tried to intercede for the execution of a road work in Anguía, Chota. Meanwhile, the Sunday newspaper detailed that Bustamante sent a letter to the executive director of Provias Decentralized, Luis Pino, with the purpose of having the project report evaluated as soon as possible. Thus, the file arrived at the corresponding office on February 14, 2022 and was approved in only one day.