Opposition reaffirms support for Car Wash and will prevent votes in the House

Presidents and leaders of opposition parties in Congress met Friday (Mar. 4) night and reaffirmed full support for probes under Operation Car Wash, investigating a corruption scheme at Petrobras. The opposition also decided to prevent all the votes in the Chamber of Deputies from Monday (Mar. 7) to exert pressure for creating the special committee to evaluate President Dilma Rousseff's impeachment request.

In a statement, the opposition declared that their members will not lack courage, determination, nor serenity "to defend the Constitution," and urged the population to take to the country's streets on the next 13th "to promote Brazil's reunion with its future." The opposition pointed out that "it is the moment to demand respect for the democratic rule of law, which states that no Brazilian is above the law and the Constitution."

The opposition also defended careful investigations by Operation Car Wash, declaring  that they are "essential to establish the truth and to assign the responsibility of all those involved" in a scheme that they consider "the country's biggest corruption scandal in history".

Senator Aécio Neves, president of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB, Brazil's largest opposition party, said the opposition leaders in the Chamber of Deputies decided to prevent all the votes of the House until they create the special committee responsible for evaluating President Dilma Rousseff's impeachment request. "From Monday (Mar. 7), we will discuss the creation of this [impeachment] committee."

For Deputy Antonio Imbassahy, leader of the PSDB in the Chamber of Deputies, the political crisis is the most important topic to be discussed now. "We will prevent the votes and demand the immediate creation of the impeachment committee."

Translated by Amarílis Anchieta

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