Case filed to oust lower house speaker

The Ethics Council of the Chamber of Deputies filed today (Nov. 3) a case to strip lower house speaker Eduardo Cunha of his mandate for breach of trust. The rapporteur will be selected from a group of three lawmakers drawn on Tuesday during a council session.

“I want to talk to all three nominees drawn, and see to it that they present their plan of work. Only then will I pick one of the three,” said the council's chairman José Carlos Araújo.

The case targetting Cunha was opened after a move by members of the Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL) and the Sustainability Network party. The request was also signed by 46 congresspeople from five other parties.

Among the arguments in the motion is Cunha's statement to the Superior Electoral Court—in which he claims he holds no bank accounts in Switzerland—contradicting that of the Prosecutor-General's Office, according to which there are bank accounts registered under his name in the European country.

In a note, Eduardo Cunha denied the allegations, arguing he has been brought under scrutiny as part of a plan devised by the government to silence him and undermine his political work.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira