April 27, 2021
The inquiry probably won t bring down the president, but it has the potential to reduce his chances to win reelection next year. Brazil s President Jair Bolsonaro (left) and Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco (right). Andressa Anholete/Bloomberg
SÃO PAULO – Throughout the past year, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro surprised critics by showing remarkable political resilience, shrugging off the resignation of two popular ministers, Brazil’s economic collapse and an out-of-control pandemic through a mix of diversionary tactics, authoritarian threats and increased public spending for the poorest. In February, two candidates backed by Bolsonaro won the top positions in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, and the president’s embrace of the powerful
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FILE PHOTO: A man waits to leave an oxygen cylinder, used by patients suffering from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and receiving home care, with the SOS AM Group for refilling, in Manaus, Brazil, January 31, 2021. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly/File Photo
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil’s prosecutor-general has opened a preliminary investigation into its president and health minister for possible negligence in response to a COVID-19 outbreak in Manaus city, according to a document seen by Reuters on Thursday.
Located deep in the Amazon rainforest, Manaus has been hit hard by a brutal second wave of virus infection that has pushed its emergency services to their breaking point. The city ran out of oxygen in January, prompting the federal government to fly in tanks from across the country in an attempt to save people from suffocating to death.
Brazilâs top prosecutor probes Bolsonaro over Manaus COVID-19 outbreak By Syndicated Content
By Ricardo Brito
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil s prosecutor-general has opened a preliminary investigation into its president and health minister for possible negligence in response to a COVID-19 outbreak in Manaus city, according to a document seen by Reuters on Thursday.
Located deep in the Amazon rainforest, Manaus has been hit hard by a brutal second wave of virus infection that has pushed its emergency services to their breaking point. The city ran out of oxygen in January, prompting the federal government to fly in tanks from across the country in an attempt to save people from suffocating to death.
Top Brazil court authorizes investigation of health minister wrex.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wrex.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
RIO DE JANEIRO
A Brazilian Supreme Court justice on Monday authorized an investigation of Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello to determine whether he is criminally responsible for the COVID-19 crisis in the Amazonian city of Manaus.
The largest city in Brazil’s vast rainforest region was slammed this month by a severe second wave of infections, and jam-packed hospitals ran out of oxygen. Patients’ family members searched for tanks to keep their loved ones breathing, and dozens died asphyxiated.
Brazil’s Prosecutor-general Augusto Aras asked the court to greenlight the investigation, citing a document that said the health ministry knew of dwindling oxygen stocks in Manaus hospitals on Jan. 8, but didn’t start dispatching extra supplies until four days later. Brazil’s air force began evacuating patients to other states on Jan. 15.