Peruvian President Faces Strides and Challenges in First 100 Days
In a press conference on October 26 Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski announced his administration’s achievements so far. Although this particular press conference has traditionally been made 100 days into the presidency, Kuczynski chose to to carry it out ten days early. During the conference, 23 out of 300 supposed total achievements were mentioned. President Kuczynski, also known simply as “PPK,” went through this list of 23 points along with Fernando Zavala, Prime Minister of Peru. On July 28, 2016, President Kuczynski was sworn into office after a close race against Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori. The election is a sign of the challenges facing the new president now, as the current congress favors his opposition in the majority, according to the BBC.
Despite this challenge, the new administration has made strides. According to Gestión, the president’s address outlined advances made in the areas of infrastructure, education, citizen security, foreign relations, water and sanitation, energy and environment, and employment.
Among his most highlighted statements is his achievement regarding relations between China and the Andean country. Following a visit to China in September, PPK has welcomed an increased flow of Chinese tourism in Peru, with Chinese Schengen or American visa-holders no longer needing an additional visa to visit Peru. “We could see instead of 50,000 tourists in China, an attraction of up to one million Chinese tourists, which would be an increase by one-third of the total number of tourists,” stated Kuczynski.
Living in Peru reports that the president also announced a salary increase of seven percent for 65,000 public school teachers. This achievement is in line with one of the many points in Kuczynski’s education reform plans that he outlined for his election platform. According to LaRepublica.pe, in the last decade, Peru has directed the lowest proportion of investment to education in the region, with only four percent of Peru’s GNP going towards the educational sector during Ollanta Humala’s presidency. Kuczynski, on the other hand, has rallied since the elections to make positive changes in education that will benefit both students and teachers.
Another goal the new administration accomplished is the enactment of a new law against corruption. On October 19, PPK announced on television that under a new law of civil termination that “those who have been convicted of corruption can never go back to work in the State.... In the central government, municipalities or regions.”
Despite the apparent positive steps the new administration has taken, the president is arguably facing more obstacles than he is willing to address.
Gestión reported on October 30 that President Kuczynski’s approval rating has decreased from 62 percent in September to 52 percent in October. This is due in part to Peruvians losing hope in the new president’s management of the economy as prices continue to rise. Citizens also report poor crime management and the appointment of inadequate public functionaries as reasons why they disapprove of the new president.
Furthermore, Peru faces social conflict in the southern Cotabambas province given that a mining project, run in part by a Chinese company, is polluting neighboring communities and negatively affecting their agriculture, homes, and health. Inhabitants of those communities have risen in protest and have clashed with police. Although the president sent a commission to Cotabambas to address the effects of the protests, not much has resulted since the visit, according to El Comercio.
Although President Kuczynski and Prime Minister Zavala have clearly been working on improving Peru’s economy, education system, and corruption problems, decreasing approval ratings show that the administration is still out of touch in many ways. After a close election, Kuczynski needs to excel not only to appease Keiko Fujimori’s supporters, but also to address the real challenges he inherited from Humala’s presidency.
