Opposition: Removal of Brazil's Senate president is a critical situation

The Supreme Court ruling to remove Senator Renan Calheiros from the Senate presidency on Monday (Dec. 5) was a surprise even to opposition senators. The Deputy President of the Senate who will be taking over as head of the upper house, Senator Jorge Viana of the Workers' Party (PT), said he has no idea how the crisis will unfold. “This is a critical situation, an extremely serious institutional crisis that this country is experiencing.”

This Tuesday (6), Viana says, members of the Senate board of officers are going to meet to discuss the recent events and decide their next steps.

Senator Humberto Costa, leader of the Workers' Party, said his party's attitude right now is one of expectation. “We have not been officially notified by the Supreme Court. This is a ruling by a single justice that needs to be confirmed by the full bench.”

For Senator Costa, the current situation will require “a little patience and caution until we have the final picture.”

“We are experiencing a serious institutional crisis and no one should be happy about it. Our biggest concern now is finding a way out of this institutional crisis.”

Austerity bill

The Senate has a voting agenda to carry out this week and next before the end of the 2016 session. Jorge Viana said he is not going to anticipate his stance as to whether a Constitution amendment bill currently in discussion in the Senate to cap the government's spending will be put to a second round of voting on Dec. 13 as planned or withdrawn from consideration. The bill is currently the most important matter on the government's agenda. “We have very important matters to vote on, and even those I disagree on could come into discussion if there is majority support,” Viana said.

After the news of Senator Calheiros's removal from the Senate presidency, Jorge Viana visited him at home. Viana says he does not make any value judgment on the Supreme Court's decision.

Translated by Mayra Borges