Mourão reiterates that Flávio Bolsonaro needs to be investigated.

Ricardo Brito (Reuters) - Acting President Hamilton Mourão reiterated that it is necessary to investigate the case involving Senator-elect Flávio Bolsonaro (PSL-RJ), and that, if his participation is proven, it should indeed lead to possible punishments, commenting on President Jair Bolsonaro's statement in Davos about the episode.

"Investigate and punish if necessary," Mourão said in an interview as he left his office at the Planalto Palace.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Bolsonaro said that "if by chance he was wrong, and this is proven, I regret it as a father, but he will have to pay the price for these actions."

Flávio Bolsonaro, who is a state representative and will assume the Senate seat in February, is under investigation in the civil sphere for suspected atypical financial transactions detected by the Council for the Control of Financial Activities (Coaf).

On Tuesday it was also revealed that Flávio employed in his office at the Legislative Assembly of Rio de Janeiro the mother and wife of a former police officer accused of leading a criminal organization with militia-like activities.

Furthermore, a former aide to Flávio, Fabrício Queiroz, is also being investigated for unusual financial transactions identified by COAF (Council for Financial Activities Control).

Mourão was asked if Bolsonaro's statement had come too late, when the damage had already been done.

"No, the first time this subject came up he had already stated that, I'm almost certain he said that," said the acting president.

Mourão was unable to say why the president had cancelled his participation in a press conference in Davos.

Military pensions
Mourão also said that a pension reform specifically aimed at the military will be done through a bill to the National Congress, while for workers in general it needs to be submitted to the Legislature through a Proposed Amendment to the Constitution (PEC).

Asked if the idea is to vote first on the constitutional amendment for all workers and then discuss the military pension system, Mourão said, "That's the idea of ​​the Minister of Defense and the military sector."

The acting president declined to comment on what should be done in this case. "The president decides. The bill is easier, it requires a simple majority," he stated, leading the country during President Jair Bolsonaro's trip to Davos, Switzerland, where he is participating in the World Economic Forum.

In the voting on a simple bill, only a majority vote in both legislative houses is required—this means that half the voting quorum required in the plenary sessions of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate is valid. In the case of a Constitutional Amendment Proposal (PEC), the votes of at least 308 of the 513 deputies and 49 of the 81 senators are needed, in two rounds of voting.