Lula enters the political articulation and studies changes in ministries

In addition to expanding the release of parliamentary amendments and second- and third-rank positions, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) signaled to his allies that he himself will become involved in the political articulation of the government from now on. On another front, the government supporters admit that there is already a discussion within the Planalto on the possibility of a ministerial reform to open space to accommodate the PP and the Republicans.

The strategic move comes after the government was on the verge of suffering a historic defeat in the vote on the provisional measure that dealt with the restructuring of the Esplanada dos Ministérios. The MP would lose its validity this Thursday (1st), if not approved by the plenary sessions of the House and Senate.

In the case of deputies, the text was only analyzed after Lula negotiated an agreement by telephone with the mayor, Arthur Lira (PP-AL). After the conversation, the PT determined that the ministries of Institutional Relations and the Civil House would speed up the release of amendments and appointments of allies in positions of second and third echelon of the Executive.

Lira’s main complaint to the president was in relation to the Planalto organizers’ strategy of negotiating individually with parliamentarians from different parties. The movement irritated the party leaders, responsible for guiding the parties during the votes in the National Congress. The so-called “retail negotiation” was pointed out by Lira as a “disrespect” on the part of Lula’s allies.

União Brasil may lose space for the PP and the Republicans

Despite the hardship and criticism because of the political articulation, members of the government admit that Lula does not intend to change ministers Alexandre Padilha (Institutional Relations) and Rui Costa (Civil House). However, changes in other portfolios commanded by other parties are not discarded by the petista.

The main target may be União Brasil, which has three ministries, but has not delivered all the votes from the bench of 59 deputies to the government. In addition to a conversation with Lira, Lula also spoke with the leader of União Brasil, deputy Elmar Nascimento (BA), before the vote on the MP da Esplanada.

The party currently occupies the portfolios of Tourism, with Daniela Carneiro, Communications, with Juscelino Filho, and National Integration, with Waldez Góes. These last two, however, were indicated by Senator Davi Alcolumbre (AP). According to Planalto members, Lula would be willing to negotiate a name with the party leadership, chaired by Deputy Luciano Bivar (PE).

In the conversation with Nascimento, Lula admitted that there was a mistake in the way the party’s ministries were set up. The main criticism of the Union bench is that the ministers do not represent the deputies.

The caption, however, may lose space so that the government can shelter two other parties, such as the Republicans and the PP, of Arthur Lira. The expectation is that polls of the leaders of these parties will take place in the coming weeks and that Lula will participate in the talks.

Lula made a record release of amendments before the MP’s vote by Congress

In order to be able to vote on the MP da Esplanada in the plenary of the Chamber, Lula made a release of R$ 1.74 billion in parliamentary amendments. The amount is the largest ever released in a single day by the Planalto Palace since the beginning of the PT government. The text was approved by 337 votes from the deputies.

The amount was pledged on Tuesday (30), the date on which the government expected the text to be voted on. Without an agreement, however, Lira ended up postponing the vote. With the new release, the government has already invested R$ 4.9 billion in parliamentary amendments since the beginning of the year.

Members of the government also admit that Lula’s promise to congressmen is to give even more speed to these authorizations for parliamentary amendments. These funds are part of the so-called individual amendments. That is, those to which every deputy or senator is entitled and which are mandatory for the Executive to execute.

According to Lira, “from now on, the government has to walk with its own legs and there won’t be any kind of sacrifice from parliamentarians”, he warned. The mayor explained that the independent and center parties gave the government another opportunity.

“The government knows and is aware that the political accommodation has not been made, it does not have a consolidated base, the leader [do governo] José Guimarães is aware of this, and we convinced our deputies that it is important for the government to have its management, even though many wanted to demonstrate to the government, so that it participates more in the active life of the Country”, stated Lira.

Government studies fortnightly meeting with party leaders to improve relations with Congress

In a new government strategy, Lula’s allies advocate that the president hold a meeting every 15 days with all party leaders in the House and Senate. The model would be a way for the president himself to listen to the demands and get closer to the parliamentarians of both Houses.

In addition to the demand for greater participation in political articulation, Lula also complained that, although he is playing “a good role as head of state”, he would be lacking in his role as head of government. For party leaders, the PT opted to make several international agendas while the agenda with the Legislative was left aside by the PT.

Last Friday (26), for example, Lula had a barbecue at Alvorada with the presence of several government ministers, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and leaders of the National Congress. Government sources admit, for example, that among the subjects discussed at the get-together was the nomination of Lula’s lawyer, Cristiano Zanin, for a vacancy as minister of the STF.

Those in government believe that Lula needs to adopt this model in order to get closer to deputies and senators. The get-togethers at the official residence of the Presidency were routine in the PT’s other mandates.

“Lula should assume command of the political articulation. There has to be negotiation on the part of the government, but there is a lack of good will on the part of the Legislature”, pointed out deputy Lindbergh Farias (PT-RJ).