ASUNCIÓN.– Pedro Alliana assumed the presidency of Paraguay this Friday following the removal of Santiago Peña, who was pushed out of power by the Senate amid the scandal over the collapse of Ueno Bank, which left millions of customers unable to access their savings. The former vice president, a leader closely trusted by former president Horacio Cartes, must complete the presidential term until August 2028, at one of the country's moments of greatest political and financial uncertainty. Peña's departure was finalized after the Senate unanimously approved his removal, with the votes of the 44 legislators present. The president had submitted his resignation on Thursday, but Congress did not accept it and moved forward with the impeachment trial for alleged poor performance of his duties. Peña did not attend the hearing, and his lawyers questioned the validity of the procedure. The president's removal also opened a new judicial front. The Prosecutor's Office launched investigations into alleged irregularities linked to the intervened bank, while cases against the entity's executives move forward. Peña denies having committed any crimes. Peña and Alliana, during the inauguration ceremony on the esplanade of the Palacio Presidencial López in Asunción NORBERTO DUARTE - AFP Paraguay's Chamber of Deputies had dismissed on Thursday the impeachment request against Alliana, after a vote that yielded 48 votes for rejection and 30 in favor of the constitutional accusation. The decision cleared the way for him to assume the head of state. Along with Peña, Alliana faced an impeachment request filed by opposition sectors, which sought to hold the top executive authorities responsible for the banking crisis. On Thursday, the then vice president held a meeting at the headquarters of the Colorado Party with Horacio Cartes, former president of Paraguay and current head of the Asociación Nacional Republicana (ANR), to analyze the political scenario and the presidential succession, as reported by ABC Color. The new president of Paraguay, Pedro Alliana, wears the presidential sash after taking the oath of office Fabián Marelli The meeting took place after Cartes, until recently one of Peña's main backers, withdrew his support and publicly backed his removal. "The Asociación Nacional Republicana (ANR) will not support the theft of public, private, and pension funds. We support the impeachment motion against President Santiago Peña with the aim of restoring the institutional framework of the Republic," said the Colorado Party in a statement signed by Cartes. "He won't have credibility," said a Paraguayan deputy after the vote in a conversation with ABC Paraguay, when asked about the measures Alliana should take upon assuming the presidency. Who is Pedro Alliana Hércules Pedro Lorenzo Alliana Rodríguez, 52 years old, was born on February 19, 1974, in Pilar, capital of the department of Ñeembucú, in southern Paraguay. Before becoming one of the most influential figures in the Colorado Party, he was a merchant in his hometown and had a notable sports career. During his adolescence he played basketball, and in 1991 he was part of the Paraguayan national team in that sport. Also known by the nickname "Mangui," Alliana grew up in a family connected to politics. His parents, Héctor Rubén Alliana and María Nidia Rodríguez, were departmental councilors for the Partido Encuentro Nacional (PEN), a different party from the one in which he would build his career. His first electoral run ended in defeat. In 2006 he ran as a candidate for mayor of Pilar for the Colorado Party, but failed to win. Two years later, at 34, he achieved his first major victory by being elected governor of Ñeembucú, a position he held until 2012. In 2013 he made the leap to national politics by becoming a deputy for his department. He spent a decade in the Lower House and presided over it between 2019 and 2022, consolidating his position within the ruling party's structure. His rise was closely tied to Horacio Cartes, who promoted him within the Colorado Party and made him one of the trusted figures of his political faction, Honor Colorado. Alliana served as president of the Asociación Nacional Republicana between 2016 and 2023, when he was succeeded precisely by the former president. That closeness was fundamental to his arrival at the vice presidency. In the general elections of April 2023, he joined Santiago Peña on the Colorado Party's presidential ticket, which won the election. Both took office on August 15 of that year. Alliana has been married since 2006 to Fabiana María Souto, also a Colorado Party leader and national deputy for Ñeembucú, and is the father of four children. His wife accompanied him during the vice presidential inauguration ceremony, when she held the Bible on which he took the oath of office. Now, his long party career and his ties to Cartes once again take center stage amid the possibility of becoming president. But his arrival to power comes in a particularly delicate scenario, with a sector of the opposition also demanding his removal. The crisis began after the Central Bank of Paraguay ordered the intervention of Banco Ueno due to serious solvency problems. The institution claims to have more than three million customers and managed significant state funds, including resources linked to pensions. Peña, who had been a shareholder of Ueno Holding until last year, came under growing political pressure due to his ties with the business group. In recent days, thousands of depositors mobilized to demand the return of their money. ANSA and AP agencies