With pressure mounting on Congress to hold President Jair Bolsonaro and his cabinet accountable for their catastrophic handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the prosecution service of Brazil’s Federal Accounts Court (TCU) decided to take action into its own hands last week. Deputy Prosecutor-General Lucas Furtado requested the suspension of Mr. Bolsonaro and key members of staff due to their “inertia and submission in implementing public policies to fight the pandemic.”
Linked to Congress, the TCU is in charge of overseeing public spending across all levels of government. As such, Mr. Furtado’s justification for his request is purely financial, claiming that the country’s healthcare system will incur a “major budget loss if it does not do its job of caring for the population in this moment of dire need.”
His decision is based on Article 44 of the TCU’s organic law, according to which the court may request the suspension of politicians if there is evidence their actions may cause further damage to the...
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