Brazil's political establishment trembles after corruption allegations

So, we have reached the apex of the "Operation Car Wash".

Supreme Court Judge Edson Fachin lifted the secrecy of dozens of inquiries targeting congress and cabinet members, as well as governors and former politicians.

For you who don't know what this operation is about:

Operation Car Wash began in March 2014 as a federal police investigation into money laundering. It initially centred on a currency exchange business at a petrol station in Brasilia. The Posto da Torre station never had a mechanical car wash, just a few hoses, but the word play was considered apt and the media latched on to it as the investigations began to widen. The team of prosecutors, which is based not in Brasilia, Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro, but the southern city of Curitiba, ended up uncovering corruption at the country's top echelons, including at Petrobras, and Odebrecht, and among the highest level of politicians. The scandal provoked huge street protests nationwide.

Odebrecht's directive board and other people ended up in jail. They thought nothing would go down and that they would be released soon, but stayed in jail to the point that they had to open their mouthes into a plea bargain, which implicated several politicians, including current and former presidents.

Justice Edson Fachin stripped immunity from 108 people who now hold office and sent cases against 211 others to lower courts. (Only the Supreme Court can authorize investigation of a sitting Brazilian politician). Some of Mr. Temer’s closest allies are on the list; so is Eduardo Paes, the high-profile ex-mayor of Rio, accused of taking bribes related to the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. The investigations stem from allegations that executives at Brazil’s largest construction firm, Odebrecht SA, paid bribes to politicians from all parties in an effort to win lucrative contracts and influence legislation. Seventy-seven senior Odebrecht staffers, including the company’s chief executive officer, Marcelo Odebrecht, signed a deal to provide information to prosecutors in exchange for leniency in sentencing. The Oderbrecht plea bargain list has been the subject of intense speculation here for months; pieces of it had leaked to media. And many of the politicians named were in any case already facing charges or scrutiny related to other parts of Lava Jato, which has been under way for three years.

It seems that we have found one of the reasons we are still a 3rd world country filled with poverty and corruption.


As of today, Brazil will be able to rebuild itself and start it all over again.
The first measure is to dig a very deep pit and bury the putrefied corpses.

For more information please click on the links below.

The Globe and Mail

BBC

a reply to: gusamaso

Holy ****, that is a massive corruption case. Operation Car Wash will go down in the history books of Brazil like Watergate did in the US.

Crazy! Thank you for sharing this.

Corruption? In Brazil?? Say it ain't so!! Such a strong country of law and order!

Don't they have the most beautiful women there.

Maybe I should go out and buy five cans of corned beef before the price goes way up.

a reply to: gusamaso

Were they accepting crazy donations from companies with interests not in line with citizens?

Inside trading with said companies for policies that would ensure profit?

Lobyists of said companies literally writing laws and passing it to loyal congressman to sign on and push?

I could go on...

We all got the same problems.

originally posted by: CriticalStinker
a reply to: gusamaso

Inside trading with said companies for policies that would ensure profit?

Lobyists of said companies literally writing laws and passing it to loyal congressman to sign on and push?

...

We all got the same problems.

Exactly what I was thinking. It just appears that in America it is part of the culture and everyone gets away with it. DId anyone even get arrested for the Fast and Furious scandal (the one Eric Holder lied about and tried to cover up and was held in contempt as a result of this?). Obama's DOJ and Holder should have been nailed for that!

www.powerlineblog.com...

a reply to: FamCore

I love how our congressman are called public servants when they work a few months out of the year and enrich their lives.

Oh and pretty much free travel.

a reply to: FamCore

That's what we expect! Problem is the politicians are judged by the Supreme Court, which is slowest than a dead horse.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

Yep. What we found out is that for the last 30 years who ran Brazil was this particular company called Odebrecht.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

They "work" 2 days a week, have plenty of time of recess, come up with # laws etc etc.

And after only 4 years get retirement benefits, as if politician was a profession...

The EU previously removed Dilma from presidency now it's seeking to remove Temer to install the Islamists and left-fascists in power in Brazil.

Unfortunately for them, being the EU, the only thing they would be able to accomplish is to completely destroy the country rather then turning it in their political direction. That would turn Brazil from a BRICS to a Under-Developing country.