MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Macri's father and brother to testify in court over alleged corruption practices

Franco and Gianfranco Macri are to testify on Thursday in a Buenos Aires court over the alleged payment of bribes by which their construction company, Socma

The brother and father of Argentina's President Mauricio Macri are to testify in court this week over their alleged involvement in a huge kickbacks scandal known as the “corruption notebooks” case, reports said on Monday.

Franco and Gianfranco Macri are to testify on Thursday in a Buenos Aires court over the alleged payment of bribes by which their construction company, Socma, secured contracts to complete two stretches of a state highway.

The alleged bribery took place while deceased former president Nestor Kirchner was in power from 2003-2007. He was succeeded in the presidency by his wife, Cristina Kirchner, and both are suspected of accepting millions of dollars in bribes from businessmen in exchange for public works contracts.

Macri's family members were summoned to testify following statements by former top road works' official Claudio Uberti, who has cooperated with prosecutors.

Macri's cousin, Angelo Calcaterra, has also been embroiled in the case but was freed from custody after cooperating with prosecutors and admitting that he contributed an unregistered donation to Cristina Kirchner's presidential campaign in 2015.

The case takes its name from the school copybooks used by a ministerial chauffeur to record his drop-offs of millions of dollars of bribes paid by businessmen to government officials to win public works contracts.