Brazilian President Michel Temer has denied a newspaper report that said he endorsed paying a jailed former congressman to remain silent in a bribery investigation.
The O Globo newspaper published a story Wednesday it said was based on a secret recording made during a meeting between Michel Temer and businessman Joesley Batista.
The report said that when Batista told the president he was paying former Speaker of the House Eduardo Cunha to keep quiet, Temer responded, "You have to keep that up, all right?"
A statement from Temer's office confirmed that he met with Batista, but said he never solicited payments.
Cunha led the impeachment fight that ousted former President Dilma Rousseff last year and brought Temer to power.
Cunha was later imprisoned on a 15-year sentence for corruption in an embezzlement scandal involving the state-owned Petrobras oil company, and has indicated he could implicate others.
Wednesday's report brought some calls for Temer's resignation as well as protests in Sao Paolo.