Moro impeached sets a precedent against more people, says defense – 01/24/2024 – Power

Leading the defense of senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR), lawyer Gustavo Bonini Guedes says that a “dangerous precedent” would be created in the Electoral Court if the former Lava Jato judge is impeached based on the arguments presented. by PL and PT.

The two acronyms filed a representation at the TRE (Regional Electoral Court) of Paraná at the end of 2022. There is the expectation that the Aije (electoral judicial investigation action), which also requests Moro’s ineligibility, could be judged in February, after changing court judges.

“As they were unable to capture anything in the campaign, they created the thesis of abuse of economic power in the pre-campaign, which never existed before. And the warning I make is the following: creating a precedent like this in the Electoral Court will cause more people up front”, says the lawyer, who has worked in the area of ​​electoral law for 20 years, in an interview with Sheet this Wednesday (24).

“As the Electoral Court is based on precedents, jurisprudence, this will reflect. In line with what the PT itself wants [no caso Moro]Lula’s event in São Paulo should be included in Lula’s pre-campaign account [Guilherme] Boulos”, he compares.

Guedes denies that excessive spending by Moro occurred in the period prior to the 2022 formal electoral campaign and argues that there should be an in-depth analysis, “spend by spend”, to eliminate expenses that, according to him, cannot be included in the list of expenditures of pre-campaign paid for by the Podemos and União Brasil parties. “PT and PL never spent money on expenses. A magnifying glass needs to be put on”, says the lawyer.

Moro joined Podemos in 2021 with an eye on the presidential race. But, close to the deadline for party changes, in 2022, he abandoned Podemos, announcing his affiliation with União Brasil and his candidacy for the Senate. Therefore, the opposition parties point out that pre-campaign spending, initially aimed at the dispute for the Palácio do Planalto, became “disproportionate” and “suppressed the chances of other competitors” for the Senate in Paraná.

“I don’t believe it, but, if Moro is impeached, Moro will leave politics, but politics continues to exist. Other opponents will be chosen for battle. The enemies will be renewed. If the TSE impeaches Moro, in these municipal elections this precedent will be used to disenfranchise more people”, says Guedes.

PRE-CAMPAIGN

Moro’s lawyer says that there is a list of acts that can be carried out by parties before the official campaign, without them being identified as early electoral propaganda, but that there is no “pre-campaign” rule.

“How much can I spend, what can I spend on, when it’s the pre-campaign. There isn’t. It’s a legislative vacuum. When the Judiciary is left to fill this legislative vacuum, sometimes the decisions are not the best”, he says , when arguing that the National Congress should look into the issue.

According to him, an amount equivalent to 30% of the campaign ceiling would be reasonable. The parameter is contained in an opinion made to União Brasil by Moro’s lawyer and deputy, Luis Felipe Cunha, together with Guedes. He also states that the case against Moro can shed light on the pre-campaign issue, which, in his opinion, is little analyzed.

Furthermore, he maintains that only expenses incurred in the district of the dispute (in Paraná) and that have attracted some electoral benefit (for the Senate candidacy) can be considered. ” Podemos paid for Moro to travel to the Northeast to visit the statue of Father Cícero, accompanied by the senator [Eduardo] Girão, from Ceará. Is this a trip that matters to voters here in Ubiratã, Paraná?”, he comments.

The expenditure would also need to have a relevant electoral connection. It excludes, for example, the acquisition of armored vehicles intended “solely for the transport and security of the member”. Finally, he also contests expenses that apparently cover a group of pre-candidates, in a generic way. The expense would have to be identified individually.

SELMA CASE

Although electoral legislation does not expressly address the “pre-campaign” period, the jurisprudence opened by the recent “Selma case” has been highlighted among those who defend Moro’s impeachment. But, for Guedes, the cases cannot be compared.

“Few people know more about this case than I do — I worked on her case — and it’s nonsense when they try to compare. What took the most was a loan she took out from her deputy. In Moro’s case, it’s 100% money from the political parties, which is what the legislation requires. There is no money from individuals”, he says, adding that he respects the TSE’s decision in the judge’s case, but that he does not agree.

By 6 votes to 1, the TSE (Superior Electoral Court) revoked the mandate of Judge Selma (Podemos-MT) at the end of 2019, understanding that there was an abuse of economic power and also illicit fundraising linked to the 2018 electoral campaign. The conclusion was that there was an omission of significant amounts used to pay campaign expenses in the pre-election period.

JUDGMENT

The senator’s defense also says that he is interested in facing the trial of the case soon, but that it is also necessary to be cautious, suggesting that the ideal is to wait for the new composition of the TRE — 2 of the 7 members of the regional court will complete their terms this month of January, including the current president. Two substitutes also leave, who are called to act in the absence of effective members.

“I prefer to judge with a judge chosen by President Lula, and I know the seriousness of the names on the triple list, than to judge in the last session of a judge. The important thing is not to judge when the lights of mandates go out”, argues Guedes.

The new president of the court will take over in February. The definition of who takes the place of judge Thiago Paiva dos Santos, on the other hand, is up to Lula, based on a triple list currently in the hands of the TSE. The court is expected to forward the triple list to Lula in February.

Until Wednesday night, Aije’s rapporteur on the TRE, judge Luciano Carrasco Falavinha Souza, had not yet placed the case on the collegiate’s voting agenda. Guedes states that Falavinha has handled the case with “seriousness and attention”.

SUBSTITUTE OFFICE

In addition to the abuse of economic power, PT and PL claim that there are signs of corruption in some of Moro’s pre-campaign expenses. They refer especially to a contract signed between União Brasil and the office of lawyer Luis Felipe Cunha, who later became Moro’s first deputy.

In this case, the value of the contraction, of R$ 1 million for a period of four months, and the fact that Cunha has no experience in the electoral area were highlighted.

In December, in a statement to the case’s rapporteur, Moro justified that the amount also covered payments to Guedes’ office, which would not have been hired directly by União Brasil due to resistance from the party’s president, Luciano Bivar.

Questioned by Sheet, Guedes confirms the version and says that there are no illegalities in the subcontracting and that it “was not done secretly”. “There was information from the party that they would not like to hire me because I had signed against the PSL [hoje União Brasil] an action to disaffiliate for just cause of Joice Hasselmann”.

“Someone said internally there. If someone used Bivar’s name because they don’t like me, I don’t know. I respect Bivar, I have nothing against him. But I understood the resistance as understandable”, he states.

According to Guedes, the alternative found, and which would have received the support of the party itself, was the partnership with Cunha’s office, which intended to start working in the electoral area. Without indicating values, Guedes says that he received a significant part of the payment of R$250,000 per month and that he produced dozens of documents together with Cunha, both for the party and for Moro’s defenses.

Guedes also criticizes the inclusion of lawyer expenses in the pre-campaign account made by the parties. “If the electoral legislation defines that I do not need to hire a lawyer to [efeito de cálculo sobre] campaign limit, why am I going to add it to the pre-campaign? There’s no point at all.”

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X-RAY | Gustavo Bonini Guedes, 41

Lawyer, member-consultant of the Electoral Law Commission of the Federal Council of the OAB, member of Abradep (Brazilian Academy of Electoral and Political Law) and former president of Iprade (Paraná Institute of Electoral Law).