Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY

A12 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 30 May 2017

Brazil’s federal police worried about new justice minister

lice investigators said in a dent did not explain why
statement Sunday night he made the change.
that members had no idea Until a few years ago,
the appointment of Jardim Jardim was a member
was coming. It added that of Brazil’s top electoral
the change in justice min- court, which on June 6 will
isters “brings concerns and launch a trial that could
uncertainty over the pos- remove Temer from office
sibility of interference in on charges of illegal cam-
the work performed by the paign financing as well as
federal police.” strip impeached former
Jardim is Brazil’s third jus- President Dilma Rousseff of
tice minister in about a her right to run for office for
year. He has criticized fed- up to eight years.
eral police investigations, Supreme Court Justice Gil-
raids and strategies in the mar Mendes, who serves
recent past. as chairman of the seven-
He replaced Osmar Ser- judge electoral court, said
raglio, who was also criti- Monday that it’s not up to
cized in the past by the the judges to resolve Bra-
police investigators union. zil’s political crisis.
There were reports Ser- “The trial will be on legal
Brazil’s President Michel Temer attends a meeting with airport operators at Planalto presidential raglio would take over issues,” said Mendes, who
palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, May 29, 2017. Brazil’s top prosecutor has opened investigations Jardim’s previous position has also been Temer’s per-
into the president for alleged obstruction of justice and passive corruption. Temer, then vice presi- as transparency minister, sonal friend for decades.
dent, rose to the presidency a little over a year ago when President Dilma Rousseff was suspended but Temer had not con-
and then removed for illegally managing the federal budget. firmed that. The justice also said it
(AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) wouldn’t be surprising if
Employees in several of- one of the members of the
By MAURICIO SAVARESE Torquato Jardim, who will the post on Sunday by Te- fices of the Transparency court decided to review
Associated Press oversee the investigators mer, who himself is under Ministry put up signs and the case, which would
SAO PAULO (AP) — The and other members of the investigation for alleged banners protesting Serra- stop the sessions for an un-
union representing Brazil’s federal police department, obstruction of justice and glio getting that post. defined amount of time.
federal police investigators in the past has criticized corruption. The unpopu- Serraglio had been under Mendes defended Temer’s
expressed concerns Mon- the “Car Wash” corruption lar president has seen his pressure to resign as justice choice of Jardim for the
day about how probes into probe that has now spread support in Congress shrink minister after he was linked
government corruption will to include alleged bribes amid growing pressures for to a corruption investiga- Cabinet position, saying
be handled by the newly by a construction com- him to step down. He de- tion in the meat business, after an event in Sao Paulo
named justice minister, pany of politicians around nies any wrongdoing and but he stayed on the job that “he is very respected
who is a personal friend of Latin America. has said he won’t resign. until Temer decided to and he will certainly do his
President Michel Temer. Jardim was appointed to The union of federal po- bring Jardim in. The presi- job very well.”q
Top Dominican official among 12 detained in bribery scandal

By EZEQUIEL LOPEZ lic works minister, a former Industry and Commerce automatically granted to lion, 720-megawatt plant
Associated Press Senate president, two for- Minister Tamistocles Mon- legislators be lifted in this was awarded to Odebre-
SANTO DOMINGO, Do- mer directors of a regula- tas, former Public Works case. cht in 2013 even though
minican Republic (AP) — tory electricity group and Minister Victor Diaz Rua The suspects were de- the company’s bid was the
A cabinet member and a businessman. They are and former Senate presi- tained after Odebrecht highest of all those submit-
nearly a dozen other peo- scheduled to appear in dent Andres Bautista and told U.S. prosecutors that ted and more than $500
ple including top-level of- court to face charges in- others could not be imme- it paid $92 million in bribes million above the limit set
ficials in the Dominican Re- cluding money laundering diately reached for com- to Dominican officials since by the country’s Congress.
public’s government were and illegal enrichment. ment. 2001 to secure 17 key gov- The bribes were part of an
detained Monday in a wid- “We can qualify this as an The attorney general said ernment contracts. overall $788 million that
ening international bribery unprecedented event be- he would request that the The company moved its Odebrecht paid to offi-
scandal involving the Bra- cause of the multitude of suspects be held for 18 “bribery bureau” to the Do- cials in 10 Latin American
zilian company Odebre- crimes and the positions of months in prison as a pre- minican Republic from Bra- countries and two African
cht, authorities said. power of those involved,” ventive measure while the zil several years ago and ones to obtain multimillion-
Prosecutors said those im- said Attorney General investigation continues. built highways, dams and a
plicated also include three Jean Alain Rodriguez. Rodriguez also said he will coal-burning power plant. dollar contracts with local
legislators, a former pub- Attorneys for Dominican demand that the immunity Construction of the $2 bil- governments.q