Brazil President Michel Temer in trouble
Brazil’s President faces new charges, hurting the credibility of politicians even more
Ever since the unpopular Michel Temer took over as President of Brazil after the controversial impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, clearly it was only a matter of time before another corruption scandal surfaced in the country. Mr. Temer formally succeeded Ms. Rousseff in August 2016 by virtue of being the vice-president and leading the centre-right Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), a crucial part of the ruling coalition when it came to power in 2014. While the impeachment motion brought Ms. Rousseff down, many leaders in the PMDB were already embroiled in cases of corruption, including the then House Speaker, Eduardo Cunha, who led the motion. Mr. Cunha was indicted in the “Operation Car Wash” scandal in May 2016 involving the state-owned oil company Petrobras, and later suspended as Speaker by the Supreme Court over allegations ranging from intimidation of members of the legislature and obstruction of investigations against himself. Five months later, he was arrested for hiding money received from bribes in offshore accounts. When audio tapes surfaced this month showing Mr. Temer, who was already under investigation for corruption, discussing the payment of bribes with Mr. Cunha, it was hardly a shock. It led to street protests seeking Mr. Temer’s resignation. Predictably, he has refused to resign and instead used force to quell the agitation.
The Brazilian political class, including the ruling PMDB and the Workers Party (PT) that was in power from 2003 to 2016, has been severely discredited over the past few years. Ms. Rousseff’s ouster is clearly a case of the ruling elite finding a scapegoat to escape further investigation into mass graft. The PT had successfully engendered a social democratic regime that combined free market policies during the commodities boom with welfare measures that helped raise many Brazilians out of poverty. Schemes such as Bolsa Familia, former President Lula da Silva’s signature welfare plan, had helped Ms. Rousseff win successive elections. But following the global economic downturn and drop in commodity prices the model unravelled, resulting in a contraction in the economy. The lid over what was a wide-ranging corruption racket involving Petrobras and ruling politicians was also blown, implicating even Mr. Lula. With the discredited Mr. Temer now in power, the PT in crisis and the lack of a clean opposition alternative, public confidence in the government and institutions is at a new low. The hope is that the judiciary and police officials who have taken on the onerous task of prosecuting cases against powerful ruling officials will not give up. If they do, the credibility of Brazil’s institutions will suffer further, and a cynical electorate could well opt for a populist outside the political system, an increasingly visible trend seen in the Americas. Source :THE HINDU
IMPORTANT WORDS FOR ARTICLE & THEIR MEANING
1) Impeachment (दोषारोपण) - Im-peach-ment
Meaning - the action of calling into question the integrity or validity of something - Noun
a charge of misconduct made against the holder of a public office - Noun
Synonyms - allegation, indictment
Antonyms - approval, praise
Example - The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.
2) Embroiled (घपला) - Em-broil-ed
Meaning - involve (someone) deeply in an argument, conflict, or difficult situation - Verb
Synonyms - involve, entangle
Antonyms - exclude, free
Example - I don't want to become embroiled in their arguments.
3) Indicted (अभियोग) - In-dict-ed
Meaning - formally accuse of or charge with a crime - Verb
Synonyms - censure, charge
Antonyms - absolve, free
Example - He is also indicted for war crimes.
4) Obstruction (बाधा) - Ob-struck-tion
Meaning - the action of obstructing or the state of being obstructed - Noun
(in various sports) the action of unlawfully obstructing a player in the opposing team - Noun
Synonyms - blockage, hindrance
Antonyms - aid, help
Example - Police can remove a vehicle that is causing an obstruction.
5) Quell (वश में करना) - Kw-el
Meaning - put an end to (a rebellion or other disorder), typically by the use of force - Verb
Synonyms - stifle, curb
Antonyms - compliment, encourage
Example - This medicine will quell your sore throat.
6) Agitation (आंदोलन) - Aji-ta-tion
Meaning - a state of anxiety or nervous excitement - Noun
Synonyms - anxiety, disturbance
Antonyms - calm, harmony
Example - He arrived home in a state of agitation.
7) Unravelled (सुलझाया) - Un-ravel-ed
Meaning - investigate and solve or explain (something complicated or puzzling) - Verb
Synonyms - untangle, undo
Antonyms - question, wonder
Example - The legal tangle was never really unravelled.
8) Onerous (कष्टदायक) - Own-er-us
Meaning - (of a task or responsibility) involving a great deal of effort, trouble, or difficulty - Adjective
Synonyms - heavy, awkward
Antonyms - calm, easy
Example - My household duties were not particularly onerous.
9) Stickybeak (दखलअंदाज) - Stick-e-be-kMeaning - an inquisitive and prying person - Noun
pry into other people's affairs - Verb
Example (English) - The woman next door is a proper stickybeak, she has to know everything about everyone.
Example (Hindi) - पड़ोस की महिला पूरी दखलअंदाज हैं, उन्हें सबकी सारी जानकारी चाहिए होती है।
Now considering the article above as a Reading Comprehension question, try to answer the following -
- Give your aspects on the above article!
- Why is there so much political corruption in Brazil?
Given below are some words to check your vocabulary you can make sentences with those words in the comment section which will be reviewed by us.
- Allegations
- Intimidation
- Legislature
- Predictably
