'Super Minister' Sergio Moro Accuses Brazilian President of Meddling, Supreme Court Rules
Contributing to a government's crisis attempting to tackle an increasingly rising COVID-19 pandemic, Bolsonaro experienced the hardest hit to his presidency when his famous justice minister resigned Friday and accused him of alleged illegal involvement in law enforcement.
His department reported that Brazilian Public Prosecutor Augusto Aras requested on Friday that the Supreme Court allow an investigation on accusations brought against President Jair Bolsonaro by former Minister Sergio Moro.
Moro vs. Bolsonaro
The unexpected resignation and the so-called 'super minister' accusations were a powerful attack against Bolsonaro, whose reputation had already plummeted after underestimating the new coronavirus as just a mere cold.
Moro, who had gained widespread public support for arresting corrupt businessmen and politicians as a prosecutor, announced that he had resigned because Bolsonaro had removed Mauricio Valeixo, chief of the federal police, for political and personal motives.
Additionally, the severe accusations to Bolosonaro are likely to subject him to genuine political, and perhaps even legal, consequences. Moro confirmed that Bolsonaro raised concerns regarding investigations in the Supreme Court, not revealing no further specifics and that he wanted more details from his chief of police inside.
"The president emphasized to me, explicitly, more than once, that he wanted someone who was a personal contact, whom he could call, from whom he could get information, intelligence reports," Moro had stated. "And really, that's not the job of the federal police to give that information."
Several scathing allegations against the president, who has yet to justify why he ordered Valeixo out, was featured in Moro's calm live television message. The office of the president was not responding to a request for an interview. Bolsonaro stated at a news conference at 5 pm on Twitter that he would "re-establish the truth."
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Brazil's Supreme Court vs. Bolsonaro
Justice Celso de Mello, in his verdict on Monday, granted the federal authorities 60 days to investigate the controversial accusations of former Minister of Justice and Public Security Sergio Moro. The withdrawal of the latter last week threw the government into chaos.
The Supreme Court of Brazil has authorized an investigation on allegations that President Jair Bolsonaro decided to "interfere" for political advantage with federal investigations.
According to the judge, the criminal acts suspected of the republic's president appear to have a close relationship with the operation of the presidential authority, leading to Bolsonaro's being investigated.
The document from the Supreme Court judge, collected by a news agency and confirmed by local media, outlines seven allegations towards Bolsonaro, such as malfeasance as well as obstruction of justice.
If the investigation supports the allegations, Bolsonaro would have to be charged and likely be expelled from power by the Brazilian Congress.
A survey conducted on Monday night reveals split views on the fate of Bolsonaro, with 45 percent of Brazilian citizens claiming Congress must initiate an impeachment process against the president.
The results that will be turned over to the Attorney General could end in two ways; either an application for political persecution against Bolsonaro or an indictment for perjured testimony against Moro.