MST CPI evaluates alternatives for Rui Costa – 08/09/2023 – Power

The direction of the CPI of the MST will accept the decision of Arthur Lira (PP-AL), who annulled the summons of the Minister of the Civil House, Rui Costa, to give testimony in the commission, at the same time that he evaluates the possibility of presenting a new request related to it.

Already at the beginning of the first session after Lira’s act, the chairman of the commission, Colonel Zucco (Republicanos-RS), denied a request by deputy Nilto Tatto (PT-SP), who intended to show a video of Vanuza dos Santos’s son at the meeting. Santos D’Souza.

Vanuza testified to the CPI last Tuesday (8). She was called by PL deputies to endorse the criticisms of the MST. Tatto asked to show the video as a counterpoint.

In the video, the son tells the story of how his family joined the fight to become settled, praises the movement and says that he still lives in areas destined for agrarian reform. He also criticizes the government of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and his management of Incra.

He says that his mother was deceived and directed by allies of the Bolsonarist government, and started to act against the MST.

“I just spoke to the rapporteur [Ricardo Sales], he has already checked the video and does not find it conducive and adequate for the investigations. He said he will not comply, as he does not add to the investigation”, said Zucco, when questioned at the beginning of the session.

Tatto was the author of the request that led Lira, in a nod to the government, to annul Rui Costa’s summons to speak at the CPI. The annulment was published in the Journal of the Chamber of Deputies this Wednesday. Tatto argued that there were formal defects in the summons requirements.

In the decision, Lira says that, according to an article in the Constitution, ministers can only be summoned to provide information before committees “when there is a correlation between the thematic field of the ministry and the substantial content of the attributions of the convening body.”

“In the present case, the application did not demonstrate the connection between the attributions of the Chief of Staff of the Presidency of the Republic and the facts investigated by the CPI about the MST”, indicates the decision.

The president of the Chamber still affirms that he does not ignore the competence of the CPls to convoke ministers of States.

“It so happens that, in the present case, this was not the reason for calling the minister, but rather the competence of the commissions in general to do so, which makes it essential to explicitly demonstrate the connection between the thematic field of the commission and the attributions of the minister to be summoned.”

The CPI summit assesses that, since the problem pointed out by Lira is the lack of grounds for the summons, there is room for a new request, under another argument.

Allies from the government base, in turn, assess that the decision may help overthrow other calls, for example that of the Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino. Right-wing deputies understand that the annulment should not affect other hearings.

“It clearly shows that the CPI, since the beginning did not have a determined fact, that it is being a space to attack and criminalize the polar movements and the agrarian reform, especially the MST, as well as trying to intimidate President Lula”, stated Tatto .

The annulment of Lira relied on the efforts of the leader of the PT in the Chamber, Zeca Dirceu, and is evaluated as a policy by the rapporteur of the CPI, Ricardo Salles (PL-SP).

“Technically, there is plenty of reason, both in relation to his management of Abin (Brazilian Intelligence Agency) since the Red April, and the cover-up of the invasions in Bahia when he was governor”, he told the Panel.

The summons had been approved last Tuesday (1st), in defeat for the Lula government (PT).

The committee’s parliamentarians decided to call the minister one day after the MST invaded an Embrapa (Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation) farm in Petrolina (PE).