CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE REPORT ON FORGED

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LIMA 002054

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINS PINR PE
SUBJECT: CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE REPORT ON FORGED
SIGNATURES SCANDAL REMAINS MIRED IN CONTROVERSY

REF: A. LIMA 1953


B. LIMA 1900

C. LIMA 1375

Sensitive but Unclassified. Please protect accordingly.


1. (U) SUMMARY: The three opposition party members of the
congressional committee investigating allegations that
President Alejandro Toledo's party forged signatures to
register for the 2000 elections concluded that there was
massive fraud and that Toledo was responsible. The two
pro-GOP members disagreed and boycotted the Committee's final
session, thereby preventing the quorum needed to transact
business. The opposition members nevertheless voted to adopt
a final report and forwarded it to the Congress Directive
Council. That body, in turn, farmed it out to the
Constitutional Affairs Committee, which is expected to reject
the report based on the absence of a quorum. While
individual opposition politicians may wish to use this
scandal to go after Toledo, the opposition parties and their
leaders remain content to let the President finish his term.
Once Toledo leaves office on 7/28/06, however, the
allegations against him could well resurface. END SUMMARY.



2. (U) The Villanueva Committee (a special congressional
committee charged with investigating allegations that
political parties forged signatures to register for the 2000
elections) terminated its mandate on 5/3. Three of its five
members (all belonging to opposition parties) signed off on a
final report that accused President Alejandro Toledo of
complicity in the alleged massive forgery of signatures to
register his Pais Posible (now Peru Posible) party; Prime
Minister Carlos Ferrero of interfering with the Committee's
investigation; and Toledo, Transport Minister Jose Ortiz and
ex-Interior Ministry Javier Reategui of involvement in the
temporary flight of witness Carmen Burga to Ecuador. The
report left it to the full Congress to determine the
appropriate sanctions. Individually, the three Committee
members expressed different opinions on the sanctions they
thought Congress should apply to Toledo. Committee Chairman
Edgar Villanueva (Peru Ahora) urged that Congress vacate the
Presidency, Xavier Barron (Unidad Nacional) suggested that
Toledo be prohibited from assuming public office for 10 years
once his term ends on 7/28/06, and Victor Velarde (APRA)
opined that the President should be suspended from office
until the case is processed by the Congress.


3. (U) The two pro-GOP Committee members, Marcial Ayaipoma
(Peru Posible) and Heriberto Benitez (Independent Moralizing
Front),rejected the report on procedural and substantive
grounds. Procedurally, they argued that the Committee lacked
the necessary quorum when it voted to adopt the report as
neither legislator was present and, under congressional
regulations, a majority-plus-one (four out of the five)
Committee members is required to establish a quorum. On
substance, they dismissed the reports conclusions as being
based on the uncritical acceptance of the non-credible and
often contradictory testimony of a string of witnesses
(Refs). Prime Minister Ferrero agreed with this assessment
during a 5/3 press conference, stating that the report's
conclusions "have no value." Ferrero also suggested that the
Villanueva Committee's opposition members were engaged in a
political witchhunt, accusing the Committee of ignoring "94
percent" of its assignment, as it only investigated two of
the 16 parties that filed signatures to register for the 2000
elections.


4. (U) The Villanueva Committee report was submitted to the
congressional Directive Council, which forwarded it to the
Constitutional Affairs Committee to determine if it was
adopted in accordance with congressional regulations. The
Chairman of that committee, Aurelio Pastor (APRA),told the
press on 5/3, that his committee would rely on the judgement
of Congress' Chief or Staff Jose Elice on this question.
Elice earlier went on record that congressional regulations
do indeed require a majority-plus-one to establish a
committee quorum, and that this means four legislators are
needed on a five-member committee.


5. (SBU) COMMENT: The Villanueva Committee has been mired
in controversy from the start, and it is not/not surprising
that its "final report" should continue this trend. While
the individual opposition legislators who signed off on the
report concluded that there was a massive forgery of
signatures and high-level GOP complicity in the temporary
flight of a key witness, and sought to hold Toledo
responsible for these acts, the opposition parties themselves
have demonstrated no/no interest in pursuing these charges
against the President, at least at this time. APRA leader
Alan Garcia, for example, on 5/3 called on the political
class to respect Toledo's constitutional term in office.
Consequently, it remains likely that the report will be
archived for the present, but that its conclusions, and the
concurrent criminal investigations into the forged signature
and witness tampering allegations, will resurface to haunt
Toledo after he leaves office. END COMMENT.
STRUBLE