(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Guatemala's congress has voted in favour of removing immunity from the country's president Otto Perez Molina. The vote paves the way for possible prosecution in a corruption scandal that has sparked huge protests in recent months, the (BBC) reported.
Crowds outside Congress cheered to celebrate the news. Prosecutors last week accused Perez Molina of masterminding a scheme to defraud the customs service of millions of dollars. He denies wrongdoing.
The resolution was passed by 132 votes in favour, well clear of the two-thirds majority needed to pass the motion in the 158-member congress. Under Guatemalan law the president will be automatically removed from office if remanded in custody.
His former vice-president and a string of top officials have been force to resign over the scandal. It comes as the country prepares for presidential elections on Sunday. Investigators have alleged that officials received a cut from bribes paid by businesses seeking to evade import duties.
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