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Paraguay President Peña admits lying about alleged smear campaign operative
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Elections & Politics

Paraguay President Peña admits lying about alleged smear campaign operative

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Paraguayan President Santiago Peña and his administration have admitted to lying about their connection to "Jimmy" Villaverde, who is accused of running a state-funded smear campaign against critics.
  • Villaverde was previously described by Peña as just another party militant, but his ministry involvement has since been confirmed.
  • The government's "lie chain" involves Peña, the Minister of Mitic, and a deputy minister, who initially denied formal ties to Villaverde.

Paraguayan President Santiago Peña and his administration have been forced to admit they lied about their connection to "Jimmy" Villaverde, a figure allegedly behind a state-funded smear campaign targeting opposition politicians, dissidents, media, and journalists. The government's initial denials have unraveled, revealing a "lie chain" involving the president himself, the Minister of Information and Communication Technologies (Mitic), Gustavo Villate, and Vice Minister of Communications, Alejandra Duarte Albospino.

Jimmy Villaverde was just a militant of the Colorado Party like thousands of others, a sympathizer within the party.

— Santiago PeñaPresident Peña's initial statement attempting to distance his government from "Jimmy" Villaverde.

Initially, Peña dismissed Villaverde as merely a "militant of the Colorado Party like thousands of others" and denied any government communication role or office at Mburuvicha Róga. However, Mitic Minister Villate eventually admitted to Congress that Villaverde had indeed been a Mitic official under the current government. Vice Minister Duarte Albospino further confirmed this by appointing him as one of her directors.

This admission contradicts earlier statements and raises serious questions about the government's transparency and its alleged involvement in "La Red Desinformante" (The Disinformation Network). Investigative reports have highlighted significant advertising spending by social media pages that simultaneously attacked critics and promoted state programs. Despite these findings, neither the government nor the Prosecutor's Office has thoroughly investigated the funding sources of these government-linked pages.

He does not work in the communication area within the Government. It is a lie that he has an office in Mburuvicha Róga.

— Santiago PeñaPresident Peña's further denial of Villaverde's connection to the government.

Peña has a history of criticizing the press, notably after reports emerged about the questionable origin of his mansion in San Bernardino, valued at approximately $900,000, and his past business relationship with the Grupo Vázquez, a business group favored by the current administration. The article also briefly mentions the "Los Sobres del Poder" (The Envelopes of Power) case involving a former official.

Villaverde was indeed a Mitic official in this government.

— Gustavo VillateMitic Minister Gustavo Villate's admission to Congress, contradicting earlier government statements.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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