AFP, Brasília :
A Brazilian opposition party on Monday filed a petition for the impeachment of President Michel Temer, underlining the growing difficulties facing the center-right leader as he tries to introduce austerity reforms.
The impeachment demand filed by the PSOL, a small leftist party, was unlikely to be accepted, so had mostly symbolic significance. The PSOL argues that Temer committed crimes by allegedly interfering in a business dispute to aid a friend in his cabinet.
Another impeachment request is expected from the leftist Workers’ Party soon.
Temer’s allies control both the lower house and Senate in Congress, meaning that even if an impeachment petition were ever put to the vote it would not pass.
However, the development is an embarrassment to Temer who came to power this year after the bitterly fought impeachment of president Dilma Rousseff, from the Workers’ Party, for breaking government accounting rules.
The spat also comes as Temer is pushing a 20-year spending freeze as the first plank in reforms he says will help Brazil recover from its worst recession in decades. The Senate is slated to vote on the freeze Tuesday.
Temer called a news conference to staunch a deepening crisis over new corruption allegations against members of his government that are causing new political uncertainty that is delaying economic recovery from a severe recession.
“We agreed there will no consideration of an amnesty for slush funds or any other electoral crime,” he said, flanked by the leaders of the Senate and lower chamber of Congress.
Brazil’s political establishment is under fire for trying to shield itself from the sprawling corruption investigation surrounding state-controlled oil company Petrobras that threatens to implicate more than 100 politicians for taking kickbacks.
Temer, who replaced impeached leftist Dilma Rousseff earlier this year vowing to clean up government, lost a fourth Cabinet minister to corruption allegations on Friday.
Lawmakers drawing up anti-corruption legislation have discussed proposals for an amnesty for past election crimes involving illegal funding that came form graft money.
Temer said he would veto any such move.
He acknowledged, however, that his government is worried about the expected fallout from a massive leniency and plea bargain deal being signed with federal prosecutors by Brazil’s largest engineering consortium Odebrecht.
