BUENOS AIRES — Brazil’s government on Wednesday purged the leadership of Petrobras, the national oil giant grappling with a sprawling graft scandal, amid accusations of a bribery scheme involving kickbacks to President Dilma Rousseff’s governing Workers Party and its allies.
The shake-up included the departure of Maria das Graças Foster, the chief executive handpicked in 2012 by Ms. Rousseff, following months of tumult at the state-controlled oil company. Skepticism had grown over Ms. Foster’s capacity to deal with the scandal at a time when low oil prices are also forcing the company to slash spending on costly projects.
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It remains unclear how Ms. Rousseff, who resisted pressure for weeks to remove Ms. Foster, will handle the thorny task of replacing her and other senior executives at Petrobras. The company said in a statement that its board, which is controlled by Brazil’s government, would meet on Friday in Rio de Janeiro to elect replacements.
