Jewelry case generates pressure in Congress against Bolsonaro – 08/13/2023 – Politics

The most recent operation that investigates alleged embezzlement of jewelry and gifts given by authorities from other countries to Jair Bolsonaro (PL) has increased pressure on the National Congress, generated apprehension from allies and silence from his supporters.

Such as Sheet showed, the investigation points out Bolsonaro’s fingerprints in the evidence of evasion of public goods for sale and personal enrichment.

Deputies from the base of President Lula’s government (PT) triggered the Federal Police and the STF (Federal Supreme Court) asking for the seizure of the passport of the former president and his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro, and will try to break telephone, telematic, banking and tax at the CPI of January 8.

This is the first time that the investigations against him reach an issue that is not easily framed as ideological by his supporters. Therefore, the silence, since they would not know how to respond, say allies of the former president.

Bolsonaro’s interlocutors, in turn, see the episode as a “mess”, but attribute the blame to the former aide-de-camp and imprisoned lieutenant colonel, Mauro Cid – they say that, especially at the end of his term, he accumulated powers and alienated allies who would advise against the ex-president to sell the gifts.

The action triggered by the PF on Friday (11), named Lucas 12:2, begins the last part of the investigations that could result in Bolsonaro being accused as leader of a criminal organization.

Allies of the former president reject this possibility and say that it is still necessary to wait for the end of the investigations, but they recognize that the scenario, this time, is different from when the operation was about a vaccine card or coup.

Although he was not the target of the investigations, as was General Mauro Lourena Cid, father of the aide-de-camp Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro had a request to break his secrecy and should be heard soon by the PF. Michelle was also the subject of a petition for the use of her confidential data.

The former president will still face, in Congress, another wave of pressure from Lula’s base parliamentarians. At the mixed CPI on January 8, the assessment is that the operation gave gas to the ex-president’s and Michelle’s breach of secrecy — something already requested by the PF itself.

“We already asked for a breach of secrecy a month and a half ago, but the president [da comissão, Arthur Maia] claimed that there was no determined fact to justify it. I think it’s changed now”, said Deputy Rogério Corrêa (PT-MG). He signs the request with Deputy Jandira Feghali (PCdoB-RJ) in the commission.

The parliamentarians also sent a letter to the director general of the PF, Andrei Passos, and the rapporteur minister of the case at the Supreme Court, Alexandre de Moraes, requesting the retention of the couple’s passport.

Still in the Chamber of Deputies, Corrêa and deputy Túlio Gadêlha (Rede-PE) intensified the collection of signatures for the creation of the CPI on jewelry, to investigate the episode involving Bolsonaro. Today, they have 111 signatures.

According to a centrão leader, the group will be able to quickly reach the necessary 170 supporters, but there are still doubts as to whether the president of the House, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), would install the commission. There is another CPI waiting ahead, that of financial pyramids.

Furthermore, it is necessary to wait for the end of the MST commission, on September 14, to make room for the implementation of new CPIs in the house.

Bolsonaro’s defense said, on Friday night (11) that the former president makes his bank transactions available to the authorities and that he “never appropriated or embezzled any public property”.

After more than 12 hours of silence about the PF operation, Bolsonaro’s defense also said, in a note, that he “voluntarily” asked the TCU (Tribunal de Contas da União) in March this year to deliver jewelry received “until the end decision about his treatment, which in fact was done”.

This was the only manifestation of the former representative on the case. This Saturday (12), on social networks, he published a video with a child, unrelated to the topic, and wished “a good Saturday to all”.

Former First Lady Michelle Bolsonaro published a biblical verse on her social media earlier this Saturday. “There’s a beautiful promise in the Bible that says: When the time is right, I, the Lord, will make it happen.”

The day before, the blog of journalist Andréia Sadi, from GloboNews, released a video that shows Michelle’s reaction to women who questioned her that day about the whereabouts of jewelry given by authorities from other countries.

Michelle went to the women’s table, in a restaurant in Brasilia, and replied: “you are so poorly informed that you know where the jewels are”.

The most aggressive reaction came from his friend, makeup artist Agustin Fernandez, who cursed the women. The video suggests that he also threw a glass of ice at them – you can hear the noise and see ice cubes falling.

In a note sent to Sadi’s blog, the former first lady’s advisor stated that Michelle “only responded to the insults” and repudiates this type of action. Fernandez declined to comment.