After the wave of criticism unleashed against Bolsonaro for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis, a new scandal puts the president in the eye of the hurricane .
A new scandal is targeting the President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro. / Photo: EFE – Joédson Alves
LatinAmerican Post | Juliana Suárez
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Leer en español: Inicia investigación contra Bolsonaro
Brasil is among the 10 countries with on of the highest number of coronavirus' infections, having rached 100000 last weekend. It has not been enough for president Jair Bolsonaro to take radical action to prevent the number from continuing to rise, which has cost him criticism for his handling of the situation.
In addition to criticism from public opinion, his position regarding the handling of the contingency led to the dismissal of his Minister of Health, who repeatedly showed a contrary position , and to the resignation of his Minister of Justice, Sergio Moro.
The resignation of the second came with one more scandal for the president and now he seems to be involved in a problem with justice. Moro has been known in Brazil for his commitment against corruption in recent years; He was the one who uncovered the Lava Jato scandal and later sent former President Lula da Silva to prison. In the middle of the coronavirus contingency, Sergio Moro decided to resign from his position and accused the president of "political interference" in the fight against corruption after Bolsonaro dismissed the director of the Federal Police, Mauricio Valeixo.
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Sergio Moro's accusations went further and he brought them to the authorities. The investigation was authorized by the Supreme Court on suspicions of politically interfering with the Federal Police and began with Moro's testimony. Presumably, this incident by the President was alleged in ongoing investigations against his children.
The former minister said at the time of his resignation that the president had promised him autonomy and had made a commitment in which he would not interfere with the organizations that fight corruption in the country, something that he would have failed to do. In his statements, Moro affirmed that the dismissal of Valeixo had had no technical basis. "The president promised me carte blanche to name all my advisers and those responsible for the ministry's bodies and he said so publicly," but "unfortunately this has not happened, " Moro said to the press, according to France 24.
On his Twitter account, the former judge and ex-minister said about the dismissal of Valeixo that: "In fact, the Director of the PF, Maurício Valeixo, was tired of being harassed by the President since August of last year for his resignation, but yesterday there was no request for resignation, nor was the exoneration decree passed to me, nor was I informed. "
De fato,o Diretor da PF Maurício Valeixo estava cansado de ser assediado desde agosto do ano passado pelo Presidente para ser substituído.Mas,ontem,não houve qualquer pedido
de demissão,nem o decreto de exoneração passou por mim ou me foi informado.https://t.co/zadUXo3J4P— Sergio Moro (@SF_Moro) April 24, 2020
In the investigation that has been formalized, it is said that Bolsonaro could have committed crimes such as coercion, obstruction of justice and / or prevarication. According to DW, "that investigation could open the way to an impeachment process against Bolsonaro or to legal actions against Moro for slander." However, Moro has claimed that he has evidence that incriminates Bolsonaro.
The Brazilian media reported that in that first testimony of Moro, he showed videos, audios and emails of conversations with the president where there would be evidence of the president's attempts to obstruct. This evidence will be collected by the Federal Police, which will then present the case to the Attorney General.
