The president of Bolivia, Rodrigo Paz, said this Monday (17) that the left that governed the country for the last 20 years embezzled more than US$15 billion from public coffers, in a corruption scheme that, according to him, left the State “without resources” and plunged into the worst economic crisis in four decades. The statements were made at a press conference at the Government House, in La Paz.
According to the newspaper The NationPaz stated that, in just seven days in office, his government team found “a scheme with more than 15 billion dollars in corruption”.
“We are still processing the information […] but what we find is a sewer with more than 15 billion dollars in corruption. They stole our future”, said the president.
According to the agency Associated Press (AP)the new government is investigating purchases and contracts made during the administrations of Evo Morales (2006–2019) and Luis Arce (2020–2025), both from the Movement to Socialism (MAS). Among the examples cited is the acquisition of French radars to combat drug trafficking, valued at 360 million euros, which, according to Paz, “have not worked” for more than a decade.
According to the agency EFEthe president mentioned the discovery of “a thread of a mafia” within the Ministry of Hydrocarbons, involving the state-owned YPFB and the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH), structures identified as responsible for fuel shortages.
Paz accused his predecessors of leaving the government “without money” and said he found “a devastated economy”. According to EFEthe president announced that formal complaints will be presented in the coming days and that all State administrative processes will be digitized to prevent new forms of impunity. Paz also warned that the amount diverted “could increase” as new audits progress.
