Budget rapporteur’s son takes over Codevasf in Piauí – 04/13/2023 – Power

The government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) appointed on Wednesday (12) agronomist Marcelo Vaz da Costa e Castro, son of senator Marcelo Castro (MDB-PI), to command Codevasf in Piauí.

In addition to general rapporteur for the 2023 Budget, the parliamentarian commands the distribution of precisely part of the funds that are intended for the federal state.

That’s because he chairs the Senate Regional Development and Tourism Commission, the collegiate body that defines the destination of R$ 6.5 billion in amendments this year.

Codevasf (Companhia de Desenvolvimento dos Vales do São Francisco and Parnaíba) was handed over by former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) to the center, changed its vocation and started to dispose of funds for amendments in paving works and machinery, such as tractors.

The national command of the state-owned company was maintained by the Lula administration, which promotes changes in boards and state superintendencies to gain support in the National Congress.

Senator Marcelo Castro was an ally of Lula during the election campaign and in the interval leading up to his inauguration.

The parliamentarian included the PT’s proposals in the 2023 Budget, such as the increase in Bolsa Família and the recomposition of the Popular Pharmacy.

Under Bolsonaro, the superintendent of Codevasf in Piauí had been sponsored by Senator Ciro Nogueira (PP-PI), former Minister of the Civil House.

In early January, Senator Castro told the Meio Norte channel, from Piauí, that his son has the necessary qualifications to command the state-owned company in the state.

“Agronomist, irrigator, banana planter, he has a long experience with irrigated agriculture, which is one of the areas for which Codevasf was created”, he said, referring to his son.

Elected in 2022, federal deputy Castro Neto (PSD-PI) is also the son of Marcelo Castro.

In the Bolsonaro administration, Codevasf’s budget was boosted by the so-called rapporteur amendments, which were considered unconstitutional last year by the STF (Federal Supreme Court).

Congress, however, found ways to maintain control of part of the budget and redistributed the rapporteur’s budget for individual and committee amendments.

The collegiate chaired by Marcelo Castro will have R$ 6.5 billion of the R$ 8.5 billion reserved for 2023 commission amendments. Budget.

As shown to Sheetthe government had already changed two of the four directors of Codevasf.

One of the most coveted directorates of the state-owned company, Integrated Development and Infrastructure, is now occupied by lawyer Henrique de Assis Coutinho Bernardes, sponsored by the political clan headed by Fernando Bezerra (MDB-PE), former leader of the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) administration. in the Senate.

The Lula government also placed agronomist José Vivaldo Souza de Mendonça Filho in the position of Director of Social and Environmental Revitalization and Sustainability. He served as an advisor to the president of the state-owned company, engineer Marcelo Moreira, since 2019.

The two nominations for director of the company were computed by the federal government as favors for União Brasil. The party that houses federal deputy Fernando Coelho and former mayor of Petrolina (PE) Miguel Coelho, both sons of Bolsonaro’s former leader.

The exchanges at the top of Codevasf are part of the Planalto Palace’s strategy of negotiating retail positions with parliamentarians to try to expand the support base in Congress.

Appointed by Bolsonaro in 2019, engineer Marcelo Moreira should remain in charge of the state-owned company in the Lula administration. He reached the presidency of Codevasf with the support of the current leader of União Brasil in the Chamber, Elmar Nascimento (BA).

Moreira’s permanence in office is still defended by the mayor, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), and by senator Davi Alcolumbre (União Brasil-AP).

The Lula government decided to keep Codevasf under the command of centrão politicians at a time when an investigation into alleged corruption with state funds is advancing. In 2022, the Federal Police raised suspicions that a company paid bribes of R$ 250,000 to a company manager.

This inquiry migrated to the STF (Federal Supreme Court) in 2023, after police officers presented evidence of a connection to federal deputy Josimar Maranhãozinho (PL-MA).