MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Odebrecht corruption in Argentina: all changed when ex president Kirchner died
A leading manager of the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht involved in corrupting government officials in virtually all Latin American countries revealed that millions of dollars in kickbacks were delivered in Argentina to pay for the natural gas pipelines network expansion contract. Read full article
Comments
Disclaimer & comment rulesSurprised? NOT really.
May 08th, 2018 - 09:12 am - Link - Report abuse +2Oh, here he was!
May 09th, 2018 - 05:54 pm - Link - Report abuse -2In recent days, GC has migrated to stories talking about Argentina's today reality and now makes his valuable contributions below stories that seek to point to past governments--all the while ignoring numerous cases in front of judges that implicate current government officials.
“The Odebrecht official also revealed that the then president of the Argentine Construction Chamber, Carlos Wagner, was the interlocutor between the managing team of the Brazilian conglomerate involved in public works contracts and the Argentine officers from then president Cristina Fernandez administration who were demanding bribes”.
May 09th, 2018 - 06:55 pm - Link - Report abuse +2Just imagine, “ the Argentine officers from then president Cristina Fernandez administration were demanding bribes”, and weren't sharing them with their boss, CFK....how stingy of them.
Where would we be without Jack, who diligently brings to us the 'corruption' of Brazil's Lula da Silva or Argentina's Cristina Fernandez.
May 10th, 2018 - 01:11 am - Link - Report abuse -2However, don't expect Jack to make any inroads into Michel Temer or Mauricio Macri's alleged corruption news. He probably does not specialize on neoliberals.
@EM
May 10th, 2018 - 04:33 pm - Link - Report abuse +1Whoever mentioned the “Toad” ? but just for your exclusive benefit, and for the 'N'th time, I have mentioned it several times, and will do so again : I AM convinced Temer and the PMDB is corrupt...very corrupt....satisfied Reekie ??
I'm trying to protect NO ONE. I'll leave Macri to you, the expert on Argentina, and I'll stick to Temer, how's that ?....but I do need to explain one thing to you...yet once again: while Temer is in office he can be investigated but not prosecuted; when he finally loses his immunity (against prosecution), probably beginning 2019, I will keep you informed on the progress - which, if you followed reliable news from Brazil, you would already know about the Rodrimar /Libra investigation to do with a presidential decree (Temer) regarding the Port of Santos, whereby the two companies were apparently favoured - in exchange for bribes - and the JBS corruption. Meanwhile, try to refrain from moaning without reason.
And you are right...I do not specialize on neoliberals - I specialize on NO ONE ; I only attempt to clarify and express my opinion on whoever makes the headlines due to corruption. Yesterday it was Lula and the PT....today it still is, but tomorrow it'll be Temer and many of his pals and ex-ministers.
THE real - REAL - problem:
May 10th, 2018 - 06:00 pm - Link - Report abuse 0https://i2.wp.com/www.humorpolitico.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Charge-09-05-2018.png?resize=515%2C420&ssl=1
If anyone should wonder why I call Enrique an idiot child, he is doing his very best to show why.
May 11th, 2018 - 03:23 am - Link - Report abuse 0The headline is “Odebrecht corruption in Argentina: all changed when ex president Kirchner died” and the article is clearly about Odebrecht corruption and the late president Néstor Kirchner, but Enrique, the poor dear microencephal, thinks it is about Macri and Temer.
It's like when EM talks about the problems with Macri's government and certain people insist on bringing up the Kirchners.
May 11th, 2018 - 08:36 am - Link - Report abuse -1Anyway, I'm not sure I understand this article. Are they claiming they were paying Nestor Kirchner, even after Cristina became President instead? Or just that he was in charge of things? And then after he died CFK refused to take bribes or to arrange things and this minister contacted them instead? With or without her knowledge?
@DT
May 11th, 2018 - 03:17 pm - Link - Report abuse 0It means that Nestor managed all of these deals and never shared that info with his wife, Cristina.
Apparently Nestor kept those details in a notebook. Allegedly that notebook only turned up after Nestor's death.
@DT
May 11th, 2018 - 06:40 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Taking advantage of this space I'll conclude my post on “Lula & PT Chief G.Hoffman...”
Sure, IF such a word does not already exist…‘entA” was just another of Dilma’s idiocies, which has not survived. Even Carmen Lucia (STF prez), when asked by a reporter if she too wanted to be referred to as ‘PresidentA’, she said “don’t be ridiculous”…In Portuguese, the gender neutral nouns are preceded by ‘o’ or ‘a’, as required.
The Liar has nothing to offer except arrogance and stale quotes. And yes, he is becoming incoherent...
Circumstantial ? the fact that 1) Lula’s wife had made a down payment for the “triprekis”, 2) she supervised the reforms with Leo Pinheiro - which would “never” have been done for anyone, at OAS’s expense, unless it was to be a ‘thank-you’ gift, 3) there are tons of witnesses, 4) the gourmet kitchen is an identical copy of the one in Atibaia, 5) in Oct/Nov 2014, when the flat was 99% ready (and the LJ was on to them), Lula’s wife went public and announced that she & Lula “had decided” to not keep the flat ...not “keep” it ?
Call it what you want, but all the evidence points to one thing, which is hardly a mere coincidence.
Rgdng whose name would figure on the title, Leo Pinheiro testified he was told to await instructions from Joao Vaccari Neto (PT treasurer) and Paulo Okamoto (head of Instituto Lula)...why ?
As to the NYT opinion, you could go one further…Only reason Lula got away with it for so long is exactly because he was IN Brazil - in the US he would never have been elected, someone as crooked as him would have been jailed long ago…and the legal chicanery by Lula’s lawyers would never be permitted.
The Brazilian justice system sure does have its faults; two of them : the delays in the highest court which allow crimes to prescribe ; the fact a chicken thief goes to jail while the powerful stay out of of it for years by submitting endless appeals… so we can say that in this case the lower courts did the job of the STF.
@TF
May 11th, 2018 - 08:00 pm - Link - Report abuse 0In the other thread you said you had insider information on Nestor's wrong-doings. Was this one of them?
@JB
So Carmen Lucia is 'a Presidente', and Temer is 'o Presidente'? Genders are such a pain, having to worry about matching all the articles and adjectives and stuff. I'm glad English got rid of them. But I'm still wondering why a tapir is considered a stupid animal in Brazil. It's so random and obscure.
I'm not a legal expert, but I guess the evidence against Lula is suspicious but not really conclusive, since they never actually accepted the triplex. Wasn't Lula's story that they were considering buying it? If OAS did it up for them and then they had paid OAS the market value that would not be a crime. Several sources said Pinheiro had changed his story to get a plea bargain, I'd be interested to know what he said originally.
I suppose most of the Brazilian politicians would either not have been elected, or not have been as crooked if they were in the US, since they would not be able to get away with so much. As for the Brazilian justice system, from what I have read it has more faults than that, a big one being that the judge is not impartial, and most crimes are not tried by a jury. Hopefully at least those you mentioned will soon be improved a little if the STF removes the privileges from the rest of the politicians.
@DT:
May 12th, 2018 - 03:26 pm - Link - Report abuse 0REF: “I suppose most of the Brazilian politicians would either not have been elected”:
They ARE elected because they ARE corrupt!
REF: “not have been as crooked, if they were in the US, since they would not be able to get away with so much”:
Let's say that the USA is better “organized”. How is a Scandal-Ridden President well-accepted instead of getting impeached? If the racketeering is at the presidential-level; it would obviously trickle down to the lower ranks. How else does the USA turn out to be THE Largest importer of all kinds of drugs?
@DT
May 12th, 2018 - 06:36 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Whether Nestor's notebook physically existed or it was just a symbolic representation of the sudden discovery about his hidden activities is just mere speculation.
There have been a number of stories and reports about this notebook an many have talked about how much Nestor liked to keep his businesses in paper. Either in written pages or physical cash.
Anyway, after her husband death, Cristina was shocked to find out about certain things. Not because she was naive and thought Nestor was a saint, but rather because of the extent and size of the illegal network of corruption that her late husband had managed to set up.
Why would you think one of her priorities right after she started her second term was to nationalize YPF? That was much more that a Chavez like sort of move. It was in fact her move to distance herself from Nestor's secret activities which for the most part she had nothing to do about.
She also tried to get rid of Julio De Vido and some other sinister ministers close to Nestor but couldn't (in fact this is the reason why she sought refuge in a far left political stance).
People have been following la femme instead of following the money.
I will just give you a hint because I don't feel that cozy writing about this in a public forum. It all starts in 1993 with the then privatization of YPF and the resulting USD 535 million that Santa Cruz province received for that when Nestor was governor.
I never supported Cristina and her way of doing things but I would never call her a murderer or the biggest thief in arg. history.
@TF
May 12th, 2018 - 07:54 pm - Link - Report abuse 0That's interesting - and mysterious. I don't see how renationalising YPF helped her distance herself from Nestor's 'activities', even if there was something fishy about the privatisation. Can you tell me more if I give you my email address?
And do you think CFK is guilty in any of the cases she's been charged with? Sounds like you don't believe she's responsible for Nisman's death, at least.
@DT
May 12th, 2018 - 11:28 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Right. Don’t know why either, but Dilma ‘n “anta” are synonymous.
Ok, by what you're saying, Lula’s guilt would only be conclusive IF he “confessed”...well, despite all I’ve already said, the fact that testimony of so many witnesses (who did not know each other) – regarding the “triprekis”, 'n other charges re which he has still to answer to – linking facts, and all pointing in the same direction, is sufficient (IMO) to safely conclude that he is guilty.
As to his ‘defense’ witnesses, OR his best pals, up to their necks in corruption as well, what would you expect them to say ? they all have a lot to lose by being honest.
And Palocci, his ex-right-hand man, has accused Lula and also incriminated himself in the process.
The fact Lula did not “accept” the triplex - given all the evidence that he WOULD if he could have - is irrelevant. It’s the same as someone setting out to murder someone, be caught red-handed just before pulling the trigger, and then claim “ah but I didn’t kill him”…I’d say, being caught in the act to commit murder is enough to incriminate.
While the project was in the hands of Bancoop, Marisa made the down payment to guarantee future ownership. After OAS took over, she negotiated all the reforms with LP, without paying another cent....first of all, it is unheard of for 'any' contractor to 'reform' an apartment without knowing who the owner is going to be, and second, OAS would only have undertaken such an expensive reform for a future owner, with a formal guarantee ...but there was none...why ? becos it was gift to Lula.
I 've said this before : it is not the judge who investigates, or produces the proof, it’s the Federal Police 'n prosecutors. If evidence is weak, prosecutors throw the charges out ; and crimes of corruption being tried by a jury is totally impractical.
If Moro were not impartial, he'd have to invent proof to back his decision...he didn't. All (8) TRF-4 & STJ judges described his decision as technically impeccable
@JB
May 13th, 2018 - 10:20 pm - Link - Report abuse 0“It’s the same as someone setting out to murder someone, be caught red-handed just before pulling the trigger, and then claim “ah but I didn’t kill him””
I don't think it's that clear-cut, but it generally is hard to prove someone intended to commit a crime if they haven't done it yet. Do you believe OAS were planning to let Lula live in the triplex for free, or sell it to him at below-market rate, or what? (Did they return ML's deposit before or after the LJ investigation took an interest?
As for the reforms, didn't Lula look around and point out some actual problems? Fixing the pool is something they would need to do anyway, remodelling the kitchen is not.
I don't know exactly how things work in Brazil, but I recall Moro releasing a wiretapped conversation between Lula and Dilma, so he must have been involved with the case well before judging it. And not being impartial isn't the same as inventing evidence. Much evidence is ambiguous and can have multiple interpretations, and people are good at reading into it what they want to see. Besides, you don't think the STF judges are all impartial and they never needed to manufacture evidence, just come up with some rather tortured reasoning.
@JB:
May 14th, 2018 - 11:13 am - Link - Report abuse 0REF: Lula’s guilt would only be conclusive IF he “confessed”:
Why Lulla alone? NONE of the +/- 2'000 [two thousand] politicians are ever going to confess nor plead guilty! In fact, doing so will be a political suicide.
= They'll lose even the most ignorant devotees, supporters.
= They'll be required to return their illicit wealth.
That's why Surreptitiously AND Gradually; they're sneaking-in, the “Legitimate-Corruption”. Didn't U notice?
https://i0.wp.com/www.humorpolitico.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/genildo-9.jpg?resize=432%2C420&ssl=1
@DT
May 14th, 2018 - 06:26 pm - Link - Report abuse 0If you'd followed the 'triplex' case you'd know how clear cut it really is.
“OAS were ‘planning’” absolutely nothing, it was a done deal - the flat and other “gifts” were Lula's in exchange for past favors (overpriced PB contracts).
When Bancoop went bust (tks to Vaccari Neto), 'n OAS took over the conclusion of the Solaris Condo, it offered to return the money to M.Leticia - she declined the offer.
Look, there is no doubt that :1) she bought into the Condo; 2) she declined the offer to have the money returned; 3) she and her son met with LP/OAS to discuss the reforms; 4) she visited the condo many times to supervise work ; 5) she instructed LP to have it ready so they could move in to spend Christmas 2014 at Guarujá, 6) in Oct 2016, she only went public to say they weren't going to 'keep' the flat, because it was too “hot” to hang on to (the LJ was on to them); 7) as alrdy mentioned, the 'kitchen' (+/- US$ 50,000) is identical to the one at the Atibaia home, another of Lula's 'hidden' properties...coincidence ? 8) in 2011, Lula was registered on tape talking openly abt his 'triplex' in Guaruja, as reported by “O Globo” & seen on “TV Globo”....IF it were a lie, OR if he felt it should not have been divulged, be sure he'd have sued them, as he does everyone who publishes what he doesn't like - but in 2011, he had no reason whatsoever to suspect what the future had in store for him.
I've already explained the “defects” Lula supposedly pointed out, reason why M.Letica & son met with LP beginning 2014, to solve the problems and 'fix it up' as per their personal taste.
The L J was launched (officially) March 2014. Lula was not the first to be investigated, or convicted. Moro released the wiretapped message in March 2016 (Dilma telling Lula she was sending him a doc, appointing him her Cab Minister, to give him immunity), 'n to be used in case Moro ordered his arrest.
The Law might be ambiguous, but none of “this” evidence (used in the two lower courts) is.
Globe & Mail: Interesting article:
May 15th, 2018 - 11:21 am - Link - Report abuse 0REF: “A search for an honest political player”:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/brazil-corruption-odyssey/article35045704/
Commenting for this story is now closed.
If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page!