He has already broken his earnest promise to eradicate nepotism and clientelism - the foundation of patronage politics in Paraguay - when on 2 July he appointed his sister-in-law, Mirtha Vergara, to the lucrative and powerful post of director of the binational Itaipú hydropower company, whose funds have long been diverted to finance political campaigns.
The aftermath
The deposition of the incumbent president was unpopular among Paraguayans, even among those who did not support Lugo. It will further intensify citizens' disdain for members of congress, and will heighten political instability in the run-up to the April 2013 elections. The prospects of effective governance may well deteriorate further as the resurgent Colorado party reacts strongly against likely efforts by the Franco administration to use state funds now at its disposal to boost the electoral prospects of the divided Liberals. The new government will also face a heavy task in repairing damaged relations with governments throughout Latin America, and across the ideological spectrum.
Asunción has seen only muted street demonstrations in support of Lugo, but there have been large protests in many rural areas where small farmers are well organised (though these are mostly unreported in the national press). More worryingly, an EPP platoon - departing from the organisation's previous focus on kidnapping landowners for ransom - targeted a Brazilian company engaged in illegal logging on 28 June at Azote'y, in the department of Concepción. The assailants burned transport equipment, and then for the first time separated a Brazilian labourer from his Paraguayan colleagues and killed him. This heightens the fear that in current conditions the widespread xenophobia towards brasiguayos in rural areas may increase.
Lugo himself at first accepted the congress's decision, but has since called on citizens to oppose the new government, saying: "The democratic process in this country is broken." Indeed, the wide perception that his sudden ousting was undemocratic will (his lacklustre record in office notwithstanding) help restore his tarnished political image and may enable him to stand for a senate seat in 2013 as head of the left-wing Frente Guasu alliance. Perhaps in the interim he will learn some lessons about political strategy and personal morality. After his fall, the task of reforming Paraguay's political and economic order is more essential than ever.
