‘Tax the Poor’ shirt deepens scrutiny of Peña family amid Paraguay crisis

‘Tax the Poor’ shirt deepens scrutiny of Peña family amid Paraguay crisis
A photograph of Constanza Peña, daughter of former Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, has become a fresh point of contention in a crisis already shaped by the liquidation of Ueno bank and the political fallout surrounding her father.

The image, reportedly posted from a private social-media account and later circulated by Paraguayan politicians and media outlets, shows Peña wearing a shirt bearing the English phrase “Tax the Poor.” Critics interpreted the slogan as a provocation at a time when Ueno customers have been unable to access deposited money and public anxiety over the financial system has intensified.

Accounts of the backlash place it in the wider context of Santiago Peña’s departure from office and an impeachment process. One report says the Ueno liquidation froze roughly R$4.6 billion in deposits and affected about 3 million account holders, while also noting that Peña had been a partner in the bank until 2025. Another describes Ueno as holding substantial public-sector deposits, including funds linked to social security and health services, increasing concerns over the crisis’s possible impact on public finances.

The shared view in both reports is that the timing, rather than the shirt alone, drove the intensity of the reaction. The phrase was read against the financial pressures facing families and against allegations of conflicts of interest connected to Peña’s previous involvement with the business group that owned Ueno. Those allegations remain subject to investigation and political proceedings, the reporting notes.

The reports offer no statement from Constanza Peña explaining the slogan or the purpose of the photo. They describe her as a Columbia University student and say criticism extended to the university’s social-media accounts, where some commenters called for action against her.

For Santiago Peña, the episode added a personal dimension to an institutional crisis. In his resignation letter, as quoted in one account, he said: “No position can be above the well-being of Paraguay.”

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