Brazil, soap operas at the first crisis of the government of Bolsonaro for corruption

In one of the countries that vibrates the most with soap operas, a political scandal for alleged corruption in the party of the president Jair Bolsonaro acquires airs of culebrón and installs a crisis in the palace of Plbadto, the seat of the presidency.

In the story, cross-charges appear between a senior official and Carlos Bolsonaro, the president's son, denials through the press and private discussions with a sound of the president himself filtered through social networks.

The context is an alleged corruption: the Bolsonaro Social Liberal Party (PSL) has reportedly misappropriated public election funds through "fake" candidates, barely registered to raise funds in the 2018 campaign.

According to the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo, the PSL had in Pernambuco, in the state of the north-east of the country, a candidate, Maria de Lourdes Paixao, who had received four days before the elections 130 000 dollars of public funds.

Paixao only collected 274 votes and nothing indicates that she was campaigning while she was the PSL's third candidate to have benefited the most from the distribution of party funds.

In addition, in another report published earlier this month, Folha said that four other PSL candidates from the state of Minas Gerais have also been registered to divert funds.

Gustavo Bebbiano, president of the PSL from January to October and responsible for authorizing the transfer of these funds, is the current secretary general of the government.

Bebbiano, who was one of the main campaign strategists of the president, said that he was not aware of the case and denied having the intention to resign of his position.

In an attempt to calm the crisis and protect himself at the beginning of this week, Bebbiano said that he had already spoken to the president – three times a day – and made himself available to clarify this episode.

The seed of a major crisis

But the son of Bolsonaro, city councilor of Rio de Janeiro and without any government charge, sowed the seeds of a major crisis.

Called publicly Bebbiano "liar", denied any contact between the official and his father and posted on Twitter a WhatsApp audio file sent by Bolsonaro to Bebbiano, in which he explained that he still did not know how to talk.

The president shared the tweet in his account and said in a TV interview with Record TV that he could dismiss Bebbiano if the irregularity is proven.

"The magnitude of the crisis was invented by the president's family," said Mauricio Santoro, a political scientist at the State University of Rio de Janeiro.

Even before receiving his leave after the surgery during which he had removed the colostomy bag placed after the attack he had been victim of in September, Bolsonaro had begun to cope with the first internal crisis of his government.

On Wednesday, the president determined that the federal police, subordinate to the Minister of Justice and former judge of Lava Jato Sergio Moro, had begun to investigate the suspicions.

The possible corruption scandal, amplified by the short circuit between the presidential family and one of the main officials, raises doubts about the government's image.

Crisis

According to badysts, the crisis undermines the confidence of the president and his party, who are involved in the fight against corruption and the traditional vices of Brazilian politics.

For Santoro, this could hamper the ruling party's legislative work for the implementation of some reforms considered "essential" by the economic team, such as pension changes.

"The government will pay an additional cost to try to approve naturally difficult reforms," ​​said Santoro, "the PSL – the second largest party in the House of Representatives – is divided, weakened by tensions with the president's family and beaten by accusations of corruption. "

(*) AP Agency