COSTA RICA’S outgoing President Rodrigo Chaves will remain a top official in his successor’s government, president-elect Laura Fernandez has announced, granting the Trump ally ongoing immunity in the face of corruption allegations.

Mr Chaves, who was barred from seeking re-election, will hold the posts of minister of the presidency and minister of finance, Ms Fernandez said on Tuesday.

The president-elect, who is due to take office tomorrow, presented herself as a “continuity” candidate in the run-up to February’s elections — so much so that many ministers and leaders of the Chaves government will also remain in their previous positions or swap jobs.

“Just as we have done since the first day of your administration, we will continue working very well as a team,” she told Mr Chaves at a public event in the capital San Jose.

Mr Chaves has curried favour with US President Donald Trump, most recently by agreeing to accept 25 third-country deportees per week from the US.

He is known for lashing out at the media and critics and has sought to project himself as similar to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele by cracking down on rising crime.

Last year, prosecutors accused him of illegal campaign finance and corruption charges, which Mr Chaves has denied.

By remaining in government, Mr Chaves retains his immunity from prosecution.

Costa Rica’s legislature has made two unsuccessful attempts to strip him of his immunity. Another attempt appears unlikely, especially as the ruling party now holds a majority in the legislature.

Opposition MP Jose Maria Villalta said on Tuesday that Mr Chaves’s appointment was a blatant attempt to “grant or preserve immunity for controversial politicians from the outgoing government, rather than to improve the functioning of institutions.”