Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva offered to disclose eight years of records for himself and named relatives if election rival Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro and his named relatives reciprocate, sharpening a campaign dispute over transparency.
Lula submitted the conditional offer to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) on Oct. 20. It covers banking, tax and telephone records. The filing did not make any of them public.
Lula had challenged Bolsonaro to open their bank and phone records during an earlier televised debate. The subsequent court filing extended the proposed exchange to named relatives and specified an eight-year period.
Al Jazeera and Reuters reported that Lula renewed his challenge at a campaign event in Maranhao state Tuesday. “I want to see whether he has the courage to disclose his bank and phone records,” Lula said.
The news outlets described corruption as a prominent issue in the race. They reported that a scandal involving banker Daniel Vorcaro had put pressure on both campaigns and drawn in influential people and institutions across Brazil. Their account said the political right had emphasized corruption, while Lula had sought to turn the issue against his opponent.
Voters are scheduled to choose between Lula and Bolsonaro in the Oct. 25 runoff.
