Brazil’s OECD Bid Under Scrutiny After Bolsonaro Allegations

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil’s bid to join the OECD has come under harsher scrutiny since allegations emerged that President Jair Bolsonaro sought to interfere with the federal police, according to the anti-bribery czar of the club of richest countries.

Drago Kos, chairman of the working group on bribery at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, urged Brazilian officials to investigate the accusations made by former Justice Minister Sergio Moro, who resigned in April in protest against Bolsonaro’s firing of the federal police chief.

“Our member states are very, very rigorous when discussing accession to the OECD, so I’m hopeful that Brazil will use this as an opportunity. But if this goes otherwise, our member states will know how to deal with it,” Kos said in an interview. His team, he added, is known to be the toughest branch of the OECD in assessing bids to join the group. “We have to be absolutely sure that Brazil is not going backward”.

Bolsonaro has been eager to see Brazil join the OECD as that would amount to a badge of honor to the country and his government. While lobbying U.S. President Donald Trump to back Brazil’s bid, Brazilian authorities have been working hard to make sure the nation meets the group’s political and economic standards.

Bolsonaro’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment on this story. The foreign ministry declined to comment.

Anti-Corruption Credentials

Kos said he was struck by the departure of Moro, who rose to fame as the judge in charge of the so-called Carwash probe that landed dozens of politicians and business leaders behind bars. Last year, the two men met in Brasilia to discuss Brazil’s efforts to meet OECD anti-corruption standards.

Moro’s abrupt resignation tainted Bolsonaro’s anti-corruption credentials, one of the pillars of his government. The case prompted a political storm in Brazil as the federal police carry out a number of investigations with potential to implicate Bolsonaro’s family, including a probe on the spread of fake news and another on money laundering and diversion of funds. The family has repeatedly denied wrongdoing.

The OECD is asking Brazilian officials “what is going on,” according to Kos, a former international soccer referee. He said both sides will hold a videoconference in June to discuss this and other matters related to Brazil’s candidacy, which was submitted in 2017.

Kos suggested that Brazil investigates Moro’s allegations to prove it remains as committed to fight corruption as it was during the Carwash probe. Prosecutors, police and investigators should be allowed to do their job, he said.

“When you see a person like Moro leaving the ministry of justice, then you know something might be terribly wrong,” he said. “In Brazil I met very qualified police officers, prosecutors and great experts to deal with corruption cases. The question now is how free they will be to do their work?”

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