BRAZIL: Senator Randolfe Rodrigues Files Motion To Impeach President Temer

(RTTNews) - Brazilian Senator Randolfe Rodrigues (Rede-AP) filed an impeachment motion against President Michel Temer in the House of Representatives for a crime of responsibility based on charges of keeping slush funds.

The motion mentions reports that the Brazilian meatpacker JBS would have disbursed around R$ 1 million (US$ 295.5 thousand) in renovations at the home of Maristela Temer, the president's daughter, in 2014.

In the impeachment request, the Senator notes that the Brazilian Federal Police collected invoices and projects at the headquarters of Argeplan giving indications that Temer's daughter was receiving undue advantages. The motion also mentions the involvement of the colonel Jojo Baptista Lima Filho, already denounced in the investigation and a close friend to Temer.

Although related to facts previous to Temer's mandate as President, he would have lied, according to the senator, by denying in a Federal Police questionnaire in January that he kept slush funds or had financial transactions with Colonel Lima.

The impeachment motion calls for the suspension of Temer's mandate and suspension of his political rights for eight years.

The speaker of the House of Representatives, Rodrigo Maia, should evaluate whether or not to accept the motion.