President Dilma Rousseff says the investigations into the kickback scandal involving state-run oil company Petrobras will bring long-lasting change to the relations between society, government, and businesses in Brazil. She pointed out this kind of scandal is not new in the country's history, but this is the first of its kind to be fully investigated. Guessing that it could stem from previous scandals that ended up unsolved, she expects the case with Petrobras to change the country's long track record of impunity “once and for all”.

The statements were made Sunday (Nov. 16) in Australia, following a Plenary Session at the G20 Summit. Rousseff went on to point out that this is the first time a case of this magnitude has been addressed in such a “completely open” way. “There is an important difference there, and I think this can actually change our country once and for all by ending impunity. This is, I think, the key point in this investigation – to show that such issues can't just be shelved into oblivion,” she said.

Asked if the case could hurt Petrobras' reputation on a global scale considering it trades stocks in a number of markets, Rousseff noted that it's not the first time that a world-class oil company has been involved in corruption allegations. Thus, she argued, an entire organization cannot be punished because of only a few corrupt offenders in its ranks.

“Petrobras doesn't have the monopoly on corruption cases. Let me remind you that among the world's major corruption scandals was that of Enron, which was a private organization. So being investigated as a result of corruption taking place within the organization is not unique to Petrobras. A majority of Petrobras members and employees are not corrupt, but some people there have indeed engaged in corrupt practices. We can't just accuse Petrobras outright, it's just a few of its associates who must be held accountable. People on both sides – those taking bribes and those offering them,” she said.

According to the president, the case is a “turning point” in Brazil. “I guess this is the first time a corruption scandal involving both the public and the private sectors has been properly investigated in Brazil. There's a huge number of scandals in Brazil that weren't fully dealt with. And perhaps its precisely these previous scandals that have led up to what happened at Petrobras.”