Brazilian Senate hit by scandals

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By Gary Duffy BBC News, Sao Paulo The reported scandals have been headline news in Brazil

Politicians as a class are hardly the most admired group of people in Brazilian society, but even using a fairly low benchmark the last few months have done little to enhance their standing.

The focus of recent attention and scandals has been the upper house of the Brazilian Congress, the Senate, home to just 81 politicians representing all parts of this vast country.

At the heart of what is only the latest of many controversies has been the revelation of more than 600 "secret acts" which were signed over recent years and which were not officially approved by the Senate.

These previously undisclosed measures included providing jobs for family members and friends of senators, as well as paying extra hours and giving pay rises to members of staff.

Some of those hired never turned up to do the work for which they were employed. The federal police have now been asked to carry out an investigation, and the "secret acts" have been annulled.

Election impact

There has also been an outcry over some senators using their foreign travel allowance to let relatives make trips overseas, and the improper use of housing allowances.

"It lowers the image that the Brazilian population has of the Congress, even lower than it already was," said David Fleischer, political science professor at the University of Brasilia.

"So the people have lost faith in their legislative institutions."

The scandal also has a wider significance because of its implications for next year's presidential election when President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, despite his personal popularity, is not eligible to run for a third consecutive term.

Senate President Jose Sarney has resisted pressure to resign

One of the best known names in Brazilian politics has been at the heart of this political storm - the current president of the Senate, Jose Sarney, who despite his position, claimed to know nothing of the "secret acts".

Among a range of allegations he has faced is failing to report to the tax authorities a bank account he held abroad. He says he was not aware of the account and has authorised the relevant authorities to investigate.

He has also admitted that he did not declare a large home he owns in Brasilia to the federal electoral authorities, but says it was on his tax statement. He has also been accused of nepotism in relation to unpublished or "secret" appointments.

Mr Sarney become Brazil's first president after democracy was restored in 1985 following 21 years of military dictatorship - a role he acquired when the politician elected to the post died unexpectedly.

Key ally

Critics would say he is the epitome of the old style "coronels" or regional political chiefs who used to rule Brazil through patronage and favours, and after 50 years in public life he certainly could be regarded as a tenacious politician.

It is unusual, by any standards, for a head of state to return as a president of one of the houses of Congress, but he has done this three times.

President Lula is keen for his chief of staff to succeed him in 2010

He is a key ally of President Lula and is a member of the broadly based Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), the biggest party in the country, and an important part of the governing coalition.

When pressure was growing on Mr Sarney to resign, President Lula was quick to offer support, pointing to his years of public service and saying it was not right to treat him as a "common person".

It was a defence that prompted much scorn and disbelief. News magazine Veja declared that "we the common people should remind the feudal masters in Brasilia that all are equal under the law".

But Mr Sarney has held on, also complaining of a lack of respect. He said the crisis related to the Senate and not to him. "The crisis is the Senate's and it is this institution that we must preserve," he said.

Mr Sarney's survival also stems from his importance for next year's presidential race, when the president would like to see his chief of staff and chosen successor, Dilma Rousseff, elected.

"Sarney is PMDB - and the PMDB has made it very, very clear that if Sarney goes, let's say under pressure from Lula, or let's say neutrality of Lula, that they will think twice about an alliance in 2010," said Professor Fleischer.

"He needs the PMDB to maintain his coalition majority in Congress for the next year and a half. He desperately needs the PMDB to be able to govern."

Unexpected partners

Offering support for Jose Sarney was tricky for President Lula to sell to some in his Workers Party (PT), says Joao Pedro Ribeiro of Tendencias Consultancy in Sao Paulo.

"Many members of the PT in the Senate...were not pleased and did not publicly defend Sarney, as Lula requested," Mr Ribeiro said.

But for Mr Ribeiro, it seems Lula is willing to alienate his own party if that ensures electoral success.

It is certainly apparent President Lula sees "governability" and next year's election as the overriding priority and it has also led him to take sides with some unexpected partners.

This week he was praising the former President Fernando Collor de Mello, for his efforts to help the government in the Senate. Mr Collor resigned from the presidency ahead of his impeachment in 1992 amid allegations of corruption.

The politicians in Brasilia are surely not the only elected representatives around the world to face this kind of controversy - as they have been quick to point out.

However, with the election of a new president due in 2010, the stakes are high, and it seems the key figures in this drama are keen to ride out the storm, irrespective of any consequences it may have for the reputation of the Brazilian Congress.