MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Rousseff defends Lula da Silva from growing claims of personal corruption

The Brazilian president and his peer Hollande had to take time to talk about the allegations during a press conference

Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff currently on an official visit to France described as ‘regrettable’ the accusations against her predecessor Lula da Silva published in the Sao Paulo media and underlined her respect and admiration for the leader.

“I condemn all the attempts, and it is not the first time to tarnish and dismiss the great respect of the Brazilian people for him” said Rousseff at a press conference in the Elysee Palace next to her peer Francois Hollande.

“I consider despicable and pathetic the attempts to tarnish his image” added Rousseff who praised Lula da Silva as the president who ‘developed Brazil’ and established equal relations among developed and developing countries.

President Hollande joined the praise and said Lula da Silva is taken as a ‘reference’ in France and is considered “a man with a great image who has always defended the interests of Brazil”

According to O Estado de Sao Paulo the former Brazilian president knew about and used funds from a far-reaching vote-buying scheme to pay for personal expenses, based on the testimony by a convicted former consultant to the ruling Workers' Party.

The testimony, reported on Tuesday by the newspaper was given in September to Brazil's attorney general's office by Marcos Valerio, an advertising executive recently convicted as a bagman in the scheme.

Valerio also testified that an aide to the former president made veiled threats when the scandal erupted in efforts to keep him quiet, the newspaper said.

According to the report, Valerio gave the testimony voluntarily in a bid to reduce his sentence after he and 24 other former Lula da Silva aides and associates were convicted in a landmark trial heard by Brazil's Supreme Court.

Though he still received a stiff 40-year prison sentence, the circumstances of Valerio's testimony are likely to cast doubt on his claims. Among other crimes, Valerio was convicted for handling the money used in the scheme, which involved payoffs to legislators in exchange for Congressional support.

The trial exposed crimes at the core of the administration of Brazil's beloved former president and was hailed as a sign that the country is growing less tolerant of the corruption long rife in local, state, and national politics.

Lula da Silva, still Brazil's most influential political figure has denied any knowledge of the scheme since it first came to light in 2005, roiling the first of his two terms.

Though Lula da Silva's legacy has been tarnished by the convictions, the trial has done little to sap his star power - even after officials including a former treasurer of the Workers' Party and Jose Dirceu, his once-powerful chief of staff, were convicted.

That could change if the allegations made by Valerio were proven. Critics have long alleged that the scheme could not have been carried out without Lula' da Silva’s knowledge, or tacit approval, but so far no proof of either has surfaced.