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A two-sided crisis near President Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil. In addition to the health contingency that his nation is going through, being the territory of Latin America most infected by coronavirus, in a matter of days the president lost the two most prominent ministers of his government. But, most important of all, he resigned yesterday leaving with his departure an accusation that the president wants to politically interfere with the National Police.
This is Sergio Moro, the ex-judge of the Lava Jato case (Odebrecht) who was in charge of leading the investigations that led to imprisonment for corruption against businessmen and politicians, including former president Lula de Silva. In 2018, in the months in which the right-wing was campaigning for the Presidency, he promised that if he arrived at Palácio do Planalto Moro he would be his Minister of Justice. He did it and until yesterday, Moro was his ally.
More than an official, he was the most accepted form among the citizens of his Government. When in July 2019 The Intercept revealed alleged mismanagement by Moro to the Lava Jato investigation that took Lula to prison, there were massive protests to defend him. In December, a study by the Dataholfa firm found that 93% of Brazilians recognized him as a leading figure in the cabinet and 53% approved of his management, far from the 30% that the president achieved in that measurement.
Bolsonaro ended up having in his team ministers who shone much more than him. Another determining figure that emerged in recent months was former Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta, who in his last weeks in office questioned the management of the Executive’s coronavirus and supported the governors who decreed preventive isolation. On April 16, the president fired him and instead appointed a medical oncologist, who assigned an ex-military man as an adviser.
One more that has the support of society is the person in charge of the Health portfolio, Paulo Guedes, who in the last week has been silent on this crisis and did not even participate in the press conference in which the Executive presented his “Marshall Plan” for the covid. Thus, with two casualties and an absent minister, the Bolsonaro government is entering times of crisis, which are deepening with the indications that Sergio Moro outlined when presenting his resignation.
Moro, Bolsonaro and the Police
The happy days of marriage between ex-Tex Moro and Bolsonaro were short-lived. The latter always claimed to have complete independence in the Ministry of Justice and since August last year disagreements between the two became evident. In that month the president tried to dismiss the director general of the Federal Police, Maurício Valeixo, a man that Moro himself took to office. That bid was won by the minister and Valeixo continued his work.
This week the resolution was different. In theory, the Federal Police is an institution that the Ministry manages independently of the Executive. But the president fired Valeixo on Thursday night. Moro only found out that its director was no longer in office when it was published in the official government newspaper. Moro’s resignation was immediate.
“The president told me that he wanted to have a person in the Police with whom he had personal contact, whom he could call, ask for information, intelligence reports (…) Lending that type of information is not the role of the Federal Police. Investigations must be preserved. Those changes implied political interference, “Moro said yesterday.
According to the former judge and former minister, Bolsonaro is “concerned” about investigations carried out by the Federal Police. Sylvio Costa, founder of the Congresso em Foco portal, assured that these are investigations in which “the president, his family and allies” could be peppered with “various crimes.
The departure of Moro seals the worst week of the president in his term: he lost two ministers, over the weekend he participated in a protest in which protesters supported a military intervention in Congress and was criticized for this, his approval ratings do not take off , received criticism for dismissing the Minister of Health and Moro questioned his respect for the institutions.
Moro, meanwhile, comes out stronger. “In the long term, he has become Bolsonaro’s main political opponent for the 2022 elections,” says the internationalist and researcher at the Regional Coordinator of Economic and Social Research, Carolina Silva. When When the politician took office, he had a favorability of 62%, a score that is already 33% according to Dataholfa.
Doubt about the military
Silva adds that the position of the Armed Forces is still unclear. “We know that the ministers and military advisers supported Moro and have worked to prevent his departure since the first crisis with Bolsosnaro, but they have not yet officially ruled,” he says.
From the angle of looking at the government crisis, everything points to a chapter in which the Armed Forces are decisive. The followers of extreme right demanded the intervention of the uniformed before Congress. The reason? The president’s opponents are demanding a impeachment. From another angle, he is strengthening the participation of the military in his cabinet. And, if Bolsonaro were to leave power, as the opposition claims, his vice president is retired General Hamilton Mourão.
“The truth in Brazil is that the military is going to expand its power. This can lead to an impact on democratic freedoms, a military government, so to speak, as we had until 85. In the country, there is no longer even the certainty that Bolsonaro will continue, “says Ana Luíza Matos de Oliveira, economist and teacher at Flacso Brasil.
Bolsonaro is being left alone, regional leaders govern for their states due to the lack of public policies of the center, while the president ignores the alerts of the World Health Organization about the coronavirus, his cabinet breaks and Congress watches over him.
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