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Credit, REUTERS / Ueslei Marcelino
“When I refer someone to any place, I know that he is a good person, given the amount of criticism he receives in much of the media,” Bolsonaro provoked.
President Jair Bolsonaro participated in the launch of a program on civil aviation in the Palácio do Planalto on Wednesday (07/10), when he said he was “done with Lava Jato.” The speech was ironic; in fact, the president praised himself and said there was no more corruption in the government.
The speech, however, had a bad impact among Lava Jato supporters and professionals working in the investigations.
Prosecutors began to point to times when Bolsonaro would have acted to weaken the anti-corruption operation. It would be the case of the appointment of the current Attorney General, Augusto Aras; the frying and subsequent removal of former minister Sergio Moro; and changes in the Council for the Control of Financial Activities (COAF).
“It is a pride, it is a satisfaction that I have, to tell this wonderful press that I do not want to end Lava Jato. I finished with Lava Jato, because there is no more corruption in the government. I know this is not a virtue, it is an obligation, “said Bolsonaro.
“I know this is not a virtue, it is an obligation, but we make the government have an open heart. When I refer someone anywhere, I know they are a good person, considering the amount of criticism they receive to a large extent.” part of the media ”, he declared.
Bolsonaro’s speech also occurs at a time when the Lava Jato do Paraná may really be nearing its end: by decision of the PGR Augusto Aras, the working group of the Curitiba operation only has a mandate to operate until 31 January 2021..
If nothing changes, it is possible that the group of 14 prosecutors that today is dedicated to the investigation will cease to exist. In this case, one of the possibilities is that the cases that are now under the control of the working group are the responsibility of the Gaeco (Special Action Group to Combat Organized Crime) of the MPF in Paraná.
Despite this, current Lava Jato prosecutors insist that the investigations can continue.
“(…) The Lava Jato operation, despite having uncovered a mega corruption scheme, is still in full swing and still has a wide horizon of illegal practices to be discovered, to be revealed,” Prosecutor Alessandro Oliveira said on Wednesday , Lava Jato Paraná coordinator, commenting on the outbreak of phase 76 of the operation, which occurred the same day.
On the same day, former minister Sergio Moro took the opportunity to criticize Jair Bolsonaro’s speech, without mentioning the president by name.
“The attempts to end Lava Jato represent a return to corruption. It is the triumph of the old policies and schemes that destroy Brazil,” he wrote on his Twitter account.
But after all, what were Bolsonaro’s attitudes that contributed to weakening Lava Jato?
1. Appoint Augusto Aras to the position of PGR
Attorney Augusto Aras’s relationship with Lava Jato has been problematic since he was appointed to the position in September 2019.
At the time, Bolsonaro broke an unofficial rule by electing a PGR that had not been elected in a vote by MPF members, organized by the National Association of Public Prosecutors (ANPR). Aras was the first pick on the list since 2003.
Credit, TSE
The Attorney General of the Republic, Augusto Aras, was appointed to the position in September 2019
The appointment of the Bahian prosecutor was also seen as a defeat for then-Justice Minister Sergio Moro, who behind the scenes opposed his election to the post.
One of the worst moments of Augusto Aras’s relationship with Lava Jato occurred in July this year, when he said that the operation was undergoing “hypertrophy” and that it was necessary to “correct directions” so that the “lavajatismo” would not last.
“Now is the time to correct course so that the lava flow does not last, but course correction does not mean a reduction in the commitment to fight corruption. On the contrary, what we have in the Chamber (MPF) is a thought of seek to strengthen scientific research and with the aim of respecting fundamental rights and guarantees ”, said Aras, during an act of the group of Prerogatives lawyers.
The trip to Curitiba was notified the day before, by telephone, an unusual procedure at the MPF.
After the visit, the Curitiba working group sent a letter to the MP’s Department of Internal Affairs, complaining about the visit.
2. The resignation of Sergio Moro
Credit, Adriano Machado / Reuters
Former Lava Jato judge Moro announced his resignation from the government and accused President Bolsonaro of trying to meddle in the investigations.
In April this year, former Minister Sergio Moro announced his resignation from the justice portfolio in the worst possible terms.
The exit was the final act of a series of attritions between the president and Moro, who came to have the status of “super administration” at the beginning of the government.
In total, 11 points of the original proposal defended by the former judge were removed from the text by the congressmen.
3. The election of Kassio Nunes to the STF
The most recent episode that was considered an attempt to weaken Lava Jato was the appointment of Judge Kassio Nunes Marques to the post of Minister of the Federal Supreme Court.
Nunes is considered a “guarantor” judge, that is, he tends to privilege the rights and guarantees of the accused in the course of investigations, often in opposition to the position of the Public Ministry. In the STF, Kassio would align himself with ministers such as Gilmar Mendes, Dias Toffoli and Ricardo Lewandowski.
Credit, TRF-1
The nomination of the judge of Piauí Kassio Nunes had the support of politicians, such as Senator Ciro Nogueira
If approved by the Senate, among the many attributes of the position, the minister can be instrumental in the acquittal or reduction of sentences of politicians.
The election of Kassio Nunes was celebrated by various politicians, including some who are currently being investigated in Lava Jato cases. This is the case, for example, of Senator Ciro Nogueira (PP-PI), who publicly praised the election of Kassio Nunes.
4. Interference with the PF and the Federal Tax Service
Since the beginning of his administration, Bolsonaro has accumulated changes in organizations that have inspection and control functions, such as the IRS, the Federal Police and Coaf.
In April 2020, for example, the President of the Republic ordered the resignation of delegate Maurício Valeixo from the position of director general of the Federal Police, for which he had been appointed by Sergio Moro.
After the fall of Valeixo, Bolsonaro tried to get the director of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin), Alexandre Ramagem, to take office, he is close to Bolsonaro and even coordinated the security of the presidential candidate during the 2018 election campaign. , the nomination, ended up not happening, and the position is now held by Chief Rolando Alexandre de Souza.
In September 2019, Bolsonaro also made a series of changes to the Federal Tax Service, a body that plays an important role in the fight against financial crime.
The president dismissed the number 2 of the fiscal hierarchy, José Paulo Ramos Fachada. The head of the Federal Police in Rio accelerated the transfer to a post outside Brazil, Ricardo Saadi. He threatened to change the head of the Rio Tax Service, Mário Dehon, and even the customs officer of the port of Itaguaí (RJ), José Alex de Oliveira.
The threats related to Dehon and Oliveira did not end on paper: in recent weeks, agency officials have protested in several cities and threatened to surrender their charges.
In the Federal Police, Saadi had already said that he would like to leave the Superintendency of Rio; however, that would only happen at the end of the year. The pressure from the Planalto Palace eventually accelerated things, and he was invited to fill a post to be created in the Netherlands.
* Laís Alegretti, from BBC News Brasil in London, collaborated.
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