Peru's Prime Minister Javier Velasquez said on Monday he would formally step down this week so he can mount a run for president next year and that several ministers now serving would be a "good" replacement for him. Velasquez, a member of President Alan Garcia's APRA party, hopes to win his party's nomination ahead of general elections scheduled for April, according to dpa. Garcia, whose disapproval rating is a lofty 60 percent despite surging economic growth, said on Sunday he would shuffle his cabinet on Tuesday. But the timing of the shuffle has been repeatedly delayed as members of APRA jockey over who its presidential candidate will be. Some are lining up behind Velasquez and others favoring Finance Minister Mercedes Araoz. "I want to be chosen in a democratic process as the party's candidate," Velasquez said on RPP radio. Velasquez said Araoz, Transport Minister Enrique Cornejo or Environment Minister Antonio Brack would excel in the prime minister role leading Garcia's cabinet. "What's important is that a change in the prime minister or the whole cabinet doesn't cause worries in the business community, because the president has shown very clearly what economic path the country is on," Velasquez said. Normally in Peru all ministers offer their resignations when a prime minister quits, but Garcia is expected to reappoint most of his cabinet. Garcia, a former leftist whose first term in the 1980s was marred by economic chaos, has emphasized free-trade and foreign investment since winning a second term in 2006. Peru is now one of the world's fastest-growing economies, forecast to expand 7 percent this year. Under Peruvian law, a president cannot serve two straight terms. Garcia has denied comments by insiders in his APRA party and the government that Araoz, who was criticized by the central bank for allowing government spending to rise too quickly, would be replaced.
