Janja acts as Lula’s ‘algorithm’ and causes discomfort – 7/22/2023 – Power

First lady Rosângela da Silva, known as Janja, lost the internal dispute at the Planalto Palace and was left without an official position in the government structure, but remains one of the most influential advisors of President Lula (PT) in the first seven months of the PT government.

Despite dispatching daily alongside the Chief Executive, Janja’s work is surrounded by a lack of transparency. In addition to the legislation surrounding the post of first lady being vague, she, without holding an office, has no formal obligations or duties, such as publishing a public agenda. She also doesn’t usually give interviews to the press.

Janja acts as a kind of Lula’s “algorithm” — a nickname given to her by some Ministers of the Esplanada. He does not use a cell phone and is little connected to the instantaneousness of current news, but he receives information from the sociologist, who participates directly in the president’s reactions to events in Brazil and in the world.

The first lady follows daily debates on the internet and measures the temperature of people’s perception of government measures. It is through the networks that she also shares records of appointments and events in which she participates.

Janja’s assessment of the issues being debated in the country is taken into account by Lula in all areas, from politics to the economy, which causes discomfort in the president’s assistants.

The best-known episode was the president’s withdrawal, after pressure from her, to resume the exemption for international remittances of up to US$50 from individuals to individuals.

The first lady was contacted by the report, through her press office, but did not respond.

In the last month, Janja resumed the live project “Papo de Respect”, in which she invites authorities and personalities to address various topics and policies of the Executive, after being criticized for the broadcast being released on official government channels.

She has already done lives alongside ministers like Fernando Haddad (Finance), to deal with Desenrola Brasil, Margareth Menezes (Culture), on the Paulo Gustavo Law, and Cida Gonçalves (Women), on tackling violence against women.

Next week he should talk to Nísia Trindade (Health). A live with Marina Silva (Environment) is also in the first lady’s plans.

Janja is also following the possible exchanges that Lula will make on the Esplanada, in the midst of pressure from PP and Republicans to enter the government. She even published a video alongside Minister Wellington Dias (Social Development), whose portfolio is sought after by the centrão.

In the recording, she stated that the folder, which takes care of Bolsa Família, is the “heart of the government”. Janja is a coreligionist, or, as she describes herself on social media, “a card-carrying PT member”.

The sociologist was one of those responsible for warning Lula about the risk to his image that the dismissal of female ministers could cause.

The petista considered allocating representatives of the PP and the Republicans in the ministries of Science and Technology, headed by Luciana Santos, and of Sports, by Ana Moser, and in the presidency of Caixa Econômica Federal, occupied by Rita Serrano.

However, pressure from Janja and the PT wing that militates in the women’s cause has weighed on the discussion and Lula has been fearful of the chance of reducing the participation of women in government.

This is not the first time that the first lady has acted behind the scenes in matters related to the PT’s ministry. More recently, she collaborated with Lula’s decision to offer former federal deputy Jean Wyllys (PT) a position in the government’s Communication Secretariat.

In addition to government issues, Janja also tries to influence the internal direction of the PT. He caused discomfort among party leaders, for example, the publication in which he calls the party’s president, Gleisi Hoffmann, a “future senator”.

The photo was posted amid rumors that former judge Sergio Moro (União Brasil) may have his mandate as a senator revoked, which would lead to a new election for the post in Paraná.

PT supporters claim that the decision of who will be a candidate for senator for Paraná in the next elections is not up to Janja, but to the leadership of the acronym in that state.

Allies of the sociologist defend her from criticism saying that her strong presence brings a more modern vision to the position of first lady. These allies also point to a sexist component in the criticism that she is going too far. In May, she stated at an event that she experiences misogyny every day.

In addition to being uncomfortable, the great influence of the first lady over the president generates fear of allies. In many cases, not even Lula’s closest interlocutors have the courage to bring questions or restrictions to Janja’s ideas to the PT.

At the beginning of the year, the government spent almost R$200,000 buying furniture for the Alvorada Palace. Janja’s desire was to spend even more and buy items signed by well-known designers, under the discourse that it is not a personal acquisition and everything will be for the next presidents.

The Minister of the Civil House, Rui Costa, aware of the wear and tear that the high cost of purchases could generate, was opposed to the idea. However, it wasn’t him who had to warn Lula about the problem, but Gilberto Carvalho, a former chief of staff and a longtime friend of the president.

Critics of Janja in the government claim that the photo in which she appears between the PT and the president of the United States, Joe Biden, taken at the White House during a meeting in February, sums up the personality of the first lady, who prefers to demonstrate power and avoids the role that is limited to the role of the president’s companion.

On the international trips on which she accompanies Lula, she has also participated in separate agendas, as is customary in many cases of traditional first ladies.

On the other hand, nationally, she frequently has agendas with government ministers —which, until this administration, did not happen. On social networks, she published photos of her schedule with Jader Filho (Cities), with whom she discussed housing in Complexo do Alemão, in Rio de Janeiro, for example.

Despite not having an official position, Janja has been dispatching daily from her office on the third floor of the Planalto Palace, the same floor as the presidential office.

At the beginning of the term, the president even considered appointing her to a position without remuneration. Informally consulted on the legal viability of the measure, the president’s assistants presented reservations to the designation of a post for Janja under penalty of this being characterized as nepotism.