Alberto Otárola: Peru PM resigns after recording with woman leaked
Alberto Otárola, Peru’s Prime Minister, has stepped down amidst allegations of using his position to aid a woman in securing lucrative government contracts. The scandal gained attention when Peruvian television aired audio recordings of conversations between Otárola and the woman.
Otárola, 57, faces a formal investigation into the accusations. The audio clips aired on the Panorama program featured conversations between Otárola and Yaziré Pinedo, aged 25. Pinedo allegedly received two contracts for work in the defence ministry in 2023, totalling 53,000 sol ($14,000; £11,000).
Otárola, who previously served as Peru’s defence minister until the transition to President Dina Boluarte’s administration in 2022, expressed affection for Pinedo in the recordings and requested her CV.
Pinedo admitted to a brief past relationship with Otárola and confirmed that the audio recordings were from conversations in 2021, predating Otárola’s cabinet position.
President Boluarte demanded Otárola’s early return from an official visit to Canada, and his resignation soon followed.