Politique
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The Brazilian Senate on Friday reelected its former president who was forced to resign five years ago over corruption allegations.
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Renan Calheiros, of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, replaced Jose Sarney, an 82-year-old political veteran, as president of the upper house.
His reelection sparked controversy as Brazil's attorney general accused him of embezzlement, fraud and possession of fake documents, which led to his resignation in 2007.
Calheiros was suspected of receiving money from lobbyists to pay allowances and expenses of a child he fathered with a former mistress.
Although the charges have eroded some of his support base, Calheiros still managed to get elected with votes from members of the ruling Workers Party and most senators aligned with President Dilma Rousseff.
"Ethics is not an objective in and of itself. The objective is Brazil, its national interest. Ethics is just a means; it is not an end," he said, responding to criticism.
Under the so-called Clean Slate Act recently passed by the Senate, politicians charged with a crime should not run for an elective office.
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