Opposition files complaint against Brazil justice minister
Justice Minister Alexandre de Moraes
Congress members in the opposition filed a complaint with the Attorney General's Office (PGR) against Justice Minister Alexandre de Moraes. The lawmakers claim he committed a confidentiality breach and call for his ouster as a precautionary measure.
In the motion, the parliamentarians accuse Moraes of having previous knowledge of the 35th phase of Operation Car Wash, launched yesterday, which led to the arrest of Antônio Palocci, who was minister under Lula and Rousseff.
In recent events and conversations, oppositionists argue, the minister declared that a new stage of Operation Car Wash was to begin this week. “The situation requires urgent measures, including the protection of the necessary impartiality demanded by the operation, with a view to averting illicit electoral exploitation and warning society against acts similar to those of the justice minister, which constitute an impeachable offense in itself,” the text reads. The document was signed by 11 senators and two federal deputies opposing President Michel Temer's administration.
Alexandre de Moraes denied he had been informed of the new spinoff of the police crackdown, and said he made a “general statement.” He assured he was only told of the operation at the usual moment, after the Federal Police set out to serve warrants.
On the motion filed with the PGR, the press office at the Justice Ministry declared that the minister would not make any comments on the matter. The Federal Police, in turn, released a note clarifying that only those directly in charge of the probes know about its content, and that “the Ministry of Justice is not notified in advance about its special operations. Nonetheless, the one in charge is advised not to leave Brasília when his attention may be required, in which case details regarding the operation are not disclosed to him.”
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Opposition files complaint against Brazil justice minister
