The two are members of one of the smaller of several Assemblies of God movements in Brazil.
The largest of those movements, the General Convention of the Assemblies of God in Brazil, issued a statement Tuesday distancing itself from them.
The two “do not represent and are not authorized to speak on behalf of the General Convention,” it said, adding that the convention “repudiates the practices reported in the press today … regarding the intermediation of public funds with the Ministry of Education.”
Brazil’s chief prosecutor, Augusto Aras, asked the Supreme Court to open an investigation into whether people with no official ties to the Education Ministry acted to release public resources, answering petitions from opposition lawmakers.
“While pastors negotiated bribes in GOLD to direct (the ministry)’s resources, millions of students were without access to education or dropping out of school,” opposition lawmaker Tabata Amaral alleged on Twitter.
The Federal Police will carry out the investigation.
Evangelicals are widely seen as a key faction backing Bolsonaro‘s drive for reelection in October. Polls have consistently shown him trailing leftist former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Vice President Hamilton Mourão said Wednesday that the reports should be investigated, though he described the education minister to journalists as an “honest” and “extremely polite” person.
This article originally appeared on APNews.com.
