8/1 breach of secrecy requests signal tension between CPMI and Moraes

The decision of the president of the Joint Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPMI) on January 8, deputy Arthur Maia (PP-BA), to previously consult Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), about the possibility of the collegiate accessing confidential documents related to the acts of vandalism, which are under the custody of the Court, generated criticism from the opposition and debates about the possible interference of the Judiciary in the investigations.

The announcement was made by Maia during the CPMI meeting last Tuesday (5) and fueled suspicions of shielding the inquiry into Operation Lesa Pátria, underway at the STF, and of challenging the autonomy of the collegiate. Despite defending the authority of the CPMI to decide on confidential documents, parliamentarians and analysts heard by the People’s Gazette even point to the risk of an institutional crisis, if Alexandre Moraes denies access to information.

This Tuesday morning (13), Arthur Maia and Alexandre de Moraes have a meeting scheduled before the CPMI session. On the collegiate agenda are approximately 800 requests for analysis, which will be narrowed down to around 200 and, of these, some will be prioritized. Maia wants to hold commission meetings this Tuesday (13) and Thursday (15) in order to complete the voting on the initial requests for hearings and information, to move on to the analysis of reports.

Considering that most of the requests deal with items under secrecy in the STF, Maia said that he would look for Moraes before any request. “The minister is conducting an inquiry and has kept some of the documents confidential. Before just asking for disclosure of something confidential, I want to talk to understand his reasons and reach an agreement, ”he said. The deputy also pointed out that CPMI and STF investigations are complementary.

The summons suggested by the CPMI president to open the hearings, as they were the champions of requests, are: Anderson Torres, former Minister of Justice under former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and former Secretary of Public Security of the Federal District; general Marco Edson Gonçalves Dias, former chief minister of the Institutional Security Office (GSI) under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT); Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro’s former assistant; Saulo Moura, then deputy director of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin) during the January 8 invasions; and Eduardo Naime, colonel and former Commander of Operations of the Military Police (PM) of the Federal District.

The Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, would be the sixth priority name, but his arrival would be by invitation and not summons.

Senator criticizes consultation of Maia to Moraes

Senator Esperidião Amin (PP-SC), author of requests to make public documents produced by the national intelligence system on events prior to January 8th – which reveal prior knowledge of the federal government, the STF and the Superior Electoral Court (TSE ) on the invasions – considered Maia’s gesture of “asking Moraes permission” to access the documents as “absolutely unnecessary”.

He also assesses that the CPMI has powers to access confidential documents of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin), which are in the possession of the joint congressional commission on these services. As for the risk of Moraes preventing access to the file on January 8, Amin said he prefers “not to comment on hypotheses”.

Senator Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE) says he is optimistic and does not believe in Moraes’ refusal to share confidential documents, considering the signs that the minister himself has been giving throughout the investigation. “I hope he [Moraes] do not reach this shielding point, like the decision that the minister himself gave in relation to confidential documents produced by the intelligence system, arguing that, in theory, documents about public facts require publicity”, he said.

As for the possibility of resorting to Justice in the event of a refusal, Girão responds with a question: who should you appeal to? He regrets that it would remain to appeal to the STF against a decision of the same court, with almost no chance of reversal. “It is up to us to show society contradictions and abuses in this process, to make the events clear”, he said.

Defender of January 8 prisoners points to escalation of interference

In the opinion of Claudio Caivano, a lawyer for 15 defendants in the January 8 investigation, Arthur Maia’s decision to seek prior approval from Moraes to gain access to the confidential content held by the STF was “as if the CPMI needed to ask the blessing of the court to exercise its prerogatives.

“The act configures clear interference between the Powers, carried out by the Legislature itself. It is another episode of the series that we have witnessed since the vote in the Chamber that endorsed the arrest of deputy Daniel Silveira (PTB-RJ), which took place days before and without the necessary approval from the plenary”, highlighted Caivano.

For him, the opposition should persist in creating a subcommittee, which may be the only opportunity to call witnesses and report facts that are still not receiving due attention, “conducting a parallel and effectively impartial investigation”. “There is no alternative to that, especially after the CPMI rapporteur, senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA), rejected requests from opponents to create sub-rapporteurs. However, I fear that the minority status of the opposition will make it difficult to implement the option, ”she said.

In any case, the lawyer hopes that, if the impact expected by some senators in relation to the content of confidential documents, such as those produced by Abin, is confirmed, the commission may take a different course, making the finding of facts unfavorable to the Lula government inevitable. .

Caivano is also the author of the book “8/1: the untold story“, which reports the episodes of the invasions of the buildings at Praça dos Três Poderes from a broader perspective, in which both the intention of the vandals and the omission of federal authorities have equal weight in the unfolding of the scenario.

Political analysts see Maia’s warning for possible friction

In the opinion of political scientist Ismael Almeida, Maia’s attitude does not reflect submission to Moraes, but rather the precaution of an experienced politician in the face of a potentially unprecedented situation in the history of the CPIs, which could represent a direct affront to Congress. “Although inquiries conducted by parliamentary committees have never faced legal obstacles and the routine access to documents protected by secrecy often resulted in leaks to the press, what now exists is the fear of a clear confrontation between powers”, he said.

The trend, assesses Almeida, is for Moraes to avoid clashing with congressmen and, at most, align himself with the CPMI command to avoid possible moments of public tension and growing institutional conflict.

Although it is considered a remote possibility by all parties, Maia chose not to rule out the possibility of blocking the January 8 inquiry due to the scenario of political polarization since the 2022 elections and the growing activism of the Judiciary. “Maia thought it prudent to combine practices and speeches with the STF minister before the CPMI formally requested access to the Lesa Pátria operation investigation, which investigates acts of vandalism in the Praça dos Três Poderes”, said the political scientist.

In this way, the conversation between Maia and Moraes should be conducted with the aim of politically smoothing out rough edges and alerting the minister about possible negative consequences if he decides not to share the documents.

The eventual unwanted decision could affect the majority group of the Chamber, led by President Arthur Lira (PP-AL). Therefore, it would affect from the opposition minority – interested in accessing the inquiry to learn details about investigations involving former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) – even members of the CPMI itself who are investigated in the inquiry of January 8, whose lawyers have not yet had any access to these documents.

According to political scientist André Felipe Rosa, if Alexandre de Moraes decides not to authorize the breach of secrecy of the January 8 inquiry, this could generate suspicions about the minister himself, especially on the part of parliamentarians linked to former president Jair Bolsonaro. Rosa observes that this gesture could also serve as fuel for the opposition to attack the federal government and question Moraes’ legitimacy and actions in the inquiry.

In this scenario, the maneuvers adopted by the Lula government to prevent or weaken the CPMI could be rescued and contribute to a certain institutional tension. Moraes is already a frequent target of parliamentarians allied with the former president, who will use this fact as an opportunity to attack both the Lula government and the minister’s legitimacy.

Even before that, Senator Marcos do Val (Podemos-ES) has already submitted a request to the collegiate to summon Moraes in order to obtain information on decisions taken before and after January 8, which, according to the parliamentarian, reveal questionable positions by part of the minister.