Brazil's Vice President Releases Post Impeachment Speech 'by Accident'

04/11/2016 - 19h49

Brazil's Vice president Michel Temer sent a 15 minute speech to lawmakers in his party, the PMDB, in which he speaks as if the impeachment was already approved by the Lower House of Congress. The voting is scheduled to take place on Sunday (17).

The speech is a type of introduction to what the administration would look like under his leadership.

In the audio that Folha was able to access, Temer says he is making his first "address to the nation".

He says he decided to speak "now that the Lower House has decided, by a large margin, to authorize the initiation of the impeachment process against the president".

The vice president said he had secluded himself for "more than a month in order to avoid appearing as if he was trying to pull off a move; practicing some type of gesture with the goal of occupying the president's place".

Temer says, however, that "many came looking for me to ask me to give at least a preliminary message to the Brazilian nation, which I am doing with great modesty, caution, moderation but also in light of my status as vice president and the president's constitutional substitute".

Temer's advisors confirmed the veracity of the audio and said that the vice president sent it to his allies "by accident". "This is a case of the vice president carrying out an exercise on his mobile phone and accidentally sending it to his group".

In the audio, Temer says it is necessary to keep in mind that there is still "a long process ahead", referring to the phase of the impeachment process that will take place in the Senate. Nevertheless, he declares his faith in the senators and says he "patiently awaits the Federal Senate's decision".

"Therefore, my words are also provisional. We must stand by and respect the Senate's sovereign decision on this matter", the vice-president deliberates in the audio.

Temer says that he can only speak after the process comes to a close in the Senate, but that "evidently, everyone who is listening to me knows that , after the Federal Senate's decision, I need to be prepared to face the grave problems that afflict our country today".

Since the speech was recorded for a scenario where Rousseff's impeachment receives Lower House approval, Temer makes a type of "victory speech" and outlines what an administration under his tutelage would look like.

He defends the ample role of the private initiative for the recovery of the country, but commits to maintaining and, "if possible", expanding the social programs already in existence, such as the Bolsa Familia financial aid to families and Pronatec.

Translated by SUGHEY RAMIREZ

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