Gleisi says that “inadmissible insubordination” motivated change in command of the Army

The national president of the Workers’ Party, federal deputy Gleisi Hoffmann (PT-PR), stated that the behavior of the now former commander of the Army, General Júlio Cesar de Arruda, characterized an inadmissible insubordination and that President Lula (PT) acted with firmness to ensure compliance with the Constitution. The statements were made on Saturday (21), shortly after the government announced Arruda’s dismissal.

“President Lula once again acted firmly to guarantee the Federal Constitution and the prerogatives of commander of the Armed Forces. The former Army commander’s behavior characterized inadmissible insubordination in the face of threats to democracy and the Force’s partisanship. Democracy rejects any guardianship of civil powers that emanate from the popular vote. There would be a crisis if President Lula had not acted in defense of the Constitution”, wrote the parliamentarian in her social networks.

The new commander of the Army appointed by Lula (PT) is General Tomás Miguel Ribeiro Paiva, who was second on the list of soldiers who could assume the post according to the criterion of seniority. He is the current military commander for the Southeast and recently gave a long speech preaching confidence in the outcome of the polls and the non-partisan Armed Forces. Shortly after the announcement of the change, the Minister of Defense, José Múcio Monteiro, declared that there was a “fracture in a level of trust” to justify Arruda’s dismissal.

After the attacks on the buildings of the Three Powers, on the 8th, the relationship between Lula and General Arruda became fragile. One of the reasons was that the then Army commander would have prevented military police from the Federal District from entering the camp set up by demonstrators in front of the General Headquarters after the acts of vandalism.