Lula government has arm wrestling with the presidency of Sebrae – 02/04/2023 – Panel

The government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and the current presidency of Sebrae are fighting over the command of the institution.

The PT administration wants to change the directors of the body, placing names in line with the Planalto Palace, while the current directors try to remain in their posts.

The Sebrae (Brazilian Support Service for Micro and Small Companies) works to support micro and small companies, as part of the so-called “Sistema S”, financed by compulsory contributions from companies.

The current CEO is Carlos Melles, who in recent years has been close to Jair Bolsonaro (PL). Former president of Sebrae and Lula’s ally, Paulo Okamotto has represented the government in conversations with the current board and suggested that current members resign.

However, Melles and his group of directors have refused the pressure, with the argument that they were reappointed by the board of the body in December last year for the four-year period 2023-2026. In addition, they claim that the institution has autonomy and should not be politically protected.

On the board, Melles was elected on a ticket with Bruno Quick, technical director, and former deputy Margarete Coelho, director of administration and ally of the mayor, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), and former minister of the Civil House Ciro Walnut (PP-PI).

As revealed by the Panel, the vice president, Geraldo Alckmin, sent a letter to Sebrae asking for the postponement of this vote at the end of the year, but it was not answered. Okamotto says that “any civilized board, with a bit of common sense”, would not have disputed these posts without consent and negotiation with the federal government.

Okamotto says that, if directors insist on remaining, the government will resort to other measures provided for in the statute, such as requesting dismissal ad nutum [por vontade de apenas uma das partes] from the council and the call for a new election.

“It is an important agency for the development of small businesses and, in our opinion, it has to be very aligned with the government, because the government and Sebrae are very complementary in terms of credit, innovation. It makes no sense for an organization like Sebrae to back to the government”, says the petista.

“Sebrae’s project cannot be that of a person, it has to be that of an organization. A person cannot stand alone to defend a personal political project”, he adds.

The federal government has 5 of the 15 seats on the council, which is the body that elects the president of Sebrae.

Okamotto says that there is a movement for him to assume the presidency of the institution again, but that he prefers that there be a renewal based on cadres trained at Sebrae itself.

Sebrae is seen by the Lula government as an important piece in its dialogue with the business community. During the election, the PT emphasized his attention to the sector, pointing out that the laws that created the MEI (individual microentrepreneur) and the Simples Nacional were enacted during his government.

Traditionally, Sebrae is also coveted for its high salaries for directors (above R$50,000), for the number of positions to be distributed and for its reinforced cash position (over R$5 billion in financial investments).

Okamotto says that Sebrae is very discredited and no longer has national programs.

“I hope that Sebrae talks a lot with small business entrepreneurs, works a lot on deficiencies in the credit, legal and innovation environment. I dream of a strong program to increase the productivity of our companies, with access to innovation, equipment, technology, to everything that big companies are entitled to,” he says.

“Due to lack of knowledge, entrepreneurs get involved in doing business and, in a very hostile environment, lose all their savings. This is unacceptable. The country is developing and cannot lose these resources, as it has been losing”, he adds.

Sought by the column, Melles declined to comment on the topic.

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