Lula and allies mobilize to defend Dino – 11/15/2023 – Power

President Lula (PT) and allies mobilized to defend the Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino (PSB), in the face of the opposition offensive generated by the fact that the wife of a man appointed as leader of the Comando Vermelho in Amazonas participated in meetings in the folder.

Members of the federal government had already used social media to express support for the minister on Tuesday (14), but the mobilization in defense of Dino gained momentum this Wednesday (15) with publications from Lula, the first echelon and parliamentarians from the base.

At the end of this Wednesday, Dino himself publicly thanked him for the messages of solidarity.

“From an early age, starting from President Lula and government colleagues, I received thousands of messages of support and solidarity. Colleagues from the legal community; governors, senators, deputies; political parties; civil society; citizens”, he wrote.

“To each and every one, I thank you very much. We continue together. The rest is not important. As my late father used to say, ‘the effect of a redoxon [suplemento de vitamina] in an Olympic swimming pool’. I continue in the same way, excited, without fear, independent, faithful to my principles. And praying every day.”

Luciane Barbosa Farias, wife of the faction leader, was at the Ministry of Justice in March. She met with the department’s Secretary of Legislative Affairs, Elias Vaz. In May she met with Rafael Velasco, secretary of Senappen (National Secretariat for Penal Policies), also linked to the department. The case was revealed by the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo.

The strain on the government was increased with the revelation that Luciane’s trip to Brasília was paid for by the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship. The ministry says that the funding was paid for the participation in the Meeting of Committees and Mechanisms to Prevent and Combat Torture, formed by structures with administrative and financial autonomy.

Parliamentarians consulted by Sheet claim that the pro-Dino demonstrations on the networks occurred spontaneously, and not under government guidance. The assessment is that the minister’s defense “in the public square” was triggered by Lula’s own position.

Earlier this Wednesday, the president stated that Dino has suffered “absurd” and “artificially planted” attacks. The PT member said that the Ministry of Justice’s actions on different fronts, such as the defense of democracy, have awakened “many opponents”.

“My solidarity with minister Flávio Dino, who has been the target of absurd artificially planted attacks. He has already said and reiterated that he has never met the wife of a criminal faction leader. There is not a single photo, but for several days they have insisted on the absurd lie”, wrote Lula.

“These actions [do ministério] they awaken many opponents, who cannot accept the loss of money and space for their criminal activities. This is where fake news is born, disseminated in a clear coordinated action”, he added.

Dino also received the solidarity of the Union’s attorney general, Jorge Messias — appointed as one of the favorites, alongside the Minister of Justice himself, for the vacancy opened in the STF (Supreme Federal Court) with the retirement of Rosa Weber.

“My solidarity with minister Flávio Dino, victim of unfair and unfounded accusations. The truth, in addition to freeing, always ends up prevailing”, wrote Messias, citing a publication made by the minister of the Presidency’s Social Communication Secretariat, Paulo Pimenta.

In addition to defending Dino, Pimenta stated that the government will not be cornered “by orchestrated actions by organized crime and militias.”

The wave of support on social media also included parliamentarians close to the minister, such as senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA) and federal deputies Duarte Jr. (PSB-MA) and Rubens Pereira Jr. (PT-MA).

The assessment is that the latest news involving Dino and the Ministry of Justice did not change the political scenario in the Senate. Government officials claim that the opposition’s resistance to Dino’s name has already crystallized, and that the episode did not change the opinion of senators on either side.

Still, they recognize that this gives fuel to the opposition. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), for example, contacted the PGR (Attorney General’s Office) asking for the minister’s removal due to the case.

A parliamentarian close to Lula claims that the wear and tear did not serve to remove Dino from the STF race either. Aides admit, however, that the political cost of getting the votes to approve the minister’s name in the Senate is on the list of negative points that the president needs to make of those listed.

Those who spoke to Lula in recent days say that he is not yet giving clear signs of his preference, but states that Dino and Messias remain favorites.

Supreme Court ministers also minimize behind the scenes the alleged drug trafficker’s wife’s visit to the Ministry of Justice, saying that several authorities are subject to going through this, due to the volume of people they receive.

The expectation at Palácio do Planalto is that the PT member will first define who will be Augusto Aras’s successor in the PGR (Attorney General’s Office), a position that has been held by interim Elizeta Ramos since September. Allies of the PT member say that the chosen one could even be announced by the end of this week.

The dispute, according to people close to Lula, is currently between deputy attorneys Paulo Gonet and Antonio Carlos Bigonha. As the Mônica Bergamo column showed, the president has been delaying the nomination because he was not excited about the names on his table.

Collaborated Cezar Feitozafrom Brasilia