'Nothing Has Changed Brazil’s Social Equilibrium'

Brazilian ambassador in New Delhi, Tovar da Silva Nunes, spoke to Pranay Sharma. Excerpts from the interview:

Brazil’s impressive economic growth, social sector reforms and political stability had made it the toast of the world. But now things are unravelling fast. What happened?

The social equilibrium between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ that was achieved is still there; nothing has changed. Controlling inflation and bringing stability to the economy to allow more people  to become full citizens, consumers and participants in the economy is secured. To maintain the economy in that good health, certain adjustments had to be made. But the basic fundamentals of the economy remain and we managed to att­ract FDI of $56 billion and $57.9 billion in 2014 and 2015. This shows there is still trust in our economy.

But there is an impeachment proceeding against President Dilma Rousseff?

In our constitution, there are two gro­unds on which a president can be impeached—if he/she commits a ‘common crime’, like a theft or a murder; the other stems from ‘administrative res­pon­sibility’. But it is a long process in the lower chamber of our Congress (parliament) where they consider if there is ground for impe­achment. In 1992, an impeachment pro­­cess was initiated aga­inst one of our presidents who had ste­pped down before the process was com­­pleted. The constitution and the pro­cedures are the same. We had mana­ged to deal with it politically. The situation is entirely different now; we will have to wait before MPs decide what to do.

What happens if she is impeached?

The vice-president takes over. But if he is also impeached, then the head of the lower house takes over until new elections are held. But if the VP takes over, he/she continues the mandate till the remainder of the term. What is important is that the institutions are there. They are solid and firm and can deal with the situation in a transparent, democratic manner.

Do the Rio Olympics, due for August, get affected by this nationwide unrest?

I don’t think so. The Olympics will be a great event. We have seen this in the past during the 2014 FIFA World Cup and before that during the Confederation Cup when reports that we will not be able to handle them turned out to be rubbish. Brazilians are not only able to organise big events but they take a different colour, different charm in Brazil. Whatever concerns one may have will vanish the moment one arrives in Brazil.

Is corruption a big issue?

Corruption is a widespread problem not only in Brazil but also in other countries. What is important is that Brazil is able to conduct a very thorough investigation under the supervision of the president. It is a thorough and transparent probe in which everybody is liable and no one is above the law. It is very important for us to know that if something wrong was done it cannot remain under cover and those res­ponsible will have to be punished.