brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president

Brazilian President Michel Temer
Brasília - Arab Today

Brazilian lawmakers tossed out a corruption charge against scandal-plagued President Michel Temer on Wednesday, saving the center-right leader from becoming the country's second leader in 12 months to be forced from office.

Despite hugely embarrassing bribery allegations, Temer had been expected to survive. But the ease of his victory was a surprise at a time when Brazil is at the height of its biggest ever anti-graft investigation, dubbed Car Wash.

The lower house of Congress needed a two-thirds majority to authorize a trial in the Supreme Court, while Temer needed only one third, or 172 deputies, either to support him or to abstain and get the charge shelved. 

In the end, he got 263 votes out of a possible 513 in a process where lawmakers voted one by one, making short, often emotional statements live on national television. That was more than half of the whole chamber.

Temer called it "a clear, indisputable" victory.

A deeply unpopular veteran of the ruling center-right PMDB party, Temer is accused of taking bribes from a meatpacking industry executive. He is the first sitting president to face a criminal charge.

If Congress had authorized the trial and the Supreme court accepted it, he would have been suspended for 180 days and the speaker of the lower house would have become interim president.

Leftist opponents were hoping the scandal would sink Temer and halt economic austerity reforms that have prompted violent protests, but which Temer says will rescue the economy after a two-year recession.

The left also wanted revenge for his rise to power a year ago, when his allies in Congress ejected leftist president Dilma Rousseff in an impeachment trial for breaking budget rules. Temer, her vice president in a shaky coalition, immediately took over.

Wednesday's debate was interrupted repeatedly by yelling and occasional scuffles, illustrating divisions across Brazil.

The escape does not mean the end of Temer's problems.

Expectations are that top prosecutor Rodrigo Janot could file at least one more criminal charge, including for obstruction of justice, in the coming weeks. Opponents have also vowed to stage new street protest against the economic reforms.

But Temer celebrated his reprieve, saying "we are pulling Brazil out of its worst economic crisis in our history," he said. "I want to complete the biggest transformation ever done in our country." 

- Bag full of money -
In the current charge, Temer is alleged to have agreed to receive millions of dollars in bribes from the JBS meatpacking giant.

Car Wash prosecutors say the alleged arrangement was typical of systemic bribery and embezzlement at the top of Brazilian politics and big business. Scores of lawmakers, eight ministers and ex-president Lula have all fallen into the Car Wash crosshairs.

What was different this time was that Temer himself was targeted.

In the most damning evidence, a close aide was filmed by police running through Sao Paulo with a suitcase stuffed with the equivalent of $150,000 in Brazilian reais -- money that the prosecutor says was being delivered to Temer.

In a separate investigation, prosecutors cite a secretly recorded late-night meeting between Temer and one of JBS's owners, Joesley Batista. In the recording, Temer allegedly is heard authorizing hush money payments to a onetime senior politician convicted of corruption, Eduardo Cunha.

Batista gave prosecutors the recording as part of his cooperation in a plea deal, one of the many that Car Wash investigators have used to build graft cases.

Temer has denied bribe-taking and says the secret recording does not include anything incriminating.

He has proved a canny operator in Brazil's toxic political landscape, presenting himself as a success in leading market reforms aimed at jump starting the recession-crippled economy.

And unlike Rousseff, who was abandoned by many of her own allies, Temer shored up his coalition with political patronage and support from business interests.

Eurasia Group analysts said that with a big victory he would not only have a good chance of riding out further charges but will help him in negotiations with Congress on passing unpopular cuts to the generous pension system and other reforms.

Source: AFP

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president brazil congress votes on corruption trial for president

 



GMT 02:31 2017 Thursday ,21 December

Watchdog slams gendered pricing

GMT 14:38 2017 Wednesday ,20 December

Oman’s oil production touches 29m barrels

GMT 23:24 2017 Wednesday ,12 July

Man tries to open emergency door of Air Asia plane

GMT 01:45 2017 Friday ,13 January

Dollar exchange rate variable at 4 major banks

GMT 07:18 2017 Wednesday ,06 December

Yemen Huthis rally after killing strongman

GMT 12:22 2017 Saturday ,11 February

UAE: Viral infections spike in unstable weather

GMT 16:14 2017 Thursday ,21 December

Over 26,000 historical artifacts seized in Istanbul

GMT 22:53 2017 Friday ,15 December

Bahrain welcomes UN report

GMT 16:26 2017 Wednesday ,12 April

Huge fire destroys French migrant camp

GMT 06:21 2017 Friday ,08 December

US Jerusalem move risks return to 'darker times

GMT 19:23 2017 Monday ,23 January

80 Houthi Militants Killed in Airstrikes
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday