RIO DE JANEIRO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Thursday defended Senate President Jose Sarney who was involved in a nepotism scandal.

    Accusations against Sarney needed to be thoroughly investigated before any sort of judgment was made, Lula told reporters.

    "You cannot deal with everything as if it was murder. It is one thing to kill, to steal, and it is another thing to ask for a job," he said.

    Transcriptions of phone conversations were published this week by local newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo which showed Senator Sarney discussing employing his grand daughter's boyfriend by the House.

    The young man was one of the people nominated through secret acts signed by the House.

    Hundreds of secret acts were found signed by the House, including several nominations of relatives and friends of politicians with Senate posts.

    President Lula, however, said the accusation against Sarney was not enough to condemn him beforehand, or to ask him to step down.

    Since the beginning of the scandal, several parties have called for Sarney to resign or temporarily leave while the investigation was undergoing.

    The senator, however, has repeatedly said he does not intend to step down.

    Sarney, who had also served as Brazil's 31st president between 1985 and 1990, is on his third term as the senate president. He presided over the Senate from 1995 to 1997 and from 2003 to 2005.