Brazilian lawmaker who blew lid on US$323 million India Covid-19 vaccine deal wears bulletproof vest to hearing

Luis Miranda and his brother, who raised suspicions about the vaccine deal with Bharat Biotech, are the key witnesses in a Senate inquiry

The contract is being probed by prosecutors to see why Brazil struck a speedy pact with Bharat after offers from Pfizer at a lower price were ignored

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Brazilian congressman Luis Miranda. Photo: Reuters

Published: 12:45pm, 26 Jun 2021Updated: 12:45pm, 26 Jun 2021

A congressman who has denounced alleged wrongdoing in a 1.6 billion reais (US$323 million) Covid-19 vaccine contract signed by Brazil’s government arrived at a Senate commission inquiry on Friday wearing a bulletproof vest for safety.

Legislator Luis Miranda and his brother Luis Ricardo Miranda, the whistle-blower at the Health Ministry who raised suspicions about the vaccine deal with India’s Bharat Biotech, are the key witnesses in a hearing under way on Friday.

The parliamentary inquiry is looking into the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than half a million people in Brazil, and accusations that it deliberately delayed securing vaccines to fight Covid-19.

Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who is under growing pressure to explain the deal with Bharat, said on Friday there were no irregularities in the contract for the Indian drugmaker’s Covaxin shot.

“There is nothing wrong with the Covaxin contract, there is no overpricing,” he said at a news conference in the interior of São Paulo.

Bolsonaro, who was elected on an anti-corruption platform, added that his enemies were trying to stain his government with unfounded accusations of corruption.