Supreme Court Justice tells Senate to investigate Covid-19 response

Justice Luís Roberto Barroso: "avoidable deaths." Photo: Carlos Moura/SCO/STF

In an individual decision, Supreme Court Justice Luís Roberto Barroso ruled that the Senate must open a congressional hearings committee to investigate the government’s pandemic response.

Back in February, opposition senators gathered enough signatures to open hearings on the issue — but it can only begin to work after Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco presents it to the floor. He is under no obligation to do so, however, and our sources told The Brazilian Report earlier this week he planned to sit on the hearings committee request for the time being.

Early in March, Justice Barroso said “many [of Brazil’s coronavirus-related deaths] were avoidable” if the country had a better pandemic response.

The decision will certainly be appealed by allies of the government and the matter will be taken to the full bench at a future date.

Débora Álvares

Débora Álvares has worked as a political reporter for newspapers Folha de S.Paulo, O Estado de S.Paulo, Globo News, HuffPost, among others. She specializes in reporting on Brasilia, working behind-the-scenes coverage at the Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary branches of government.