NGO leader complained about criticism of Dino’s trip to Maré

José Cláudio Fontoura Piúma, president of the NGO Multiplicação Social, where this Friday (19) the Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro discovered the functioning of a drug trafficking bunker, gave recent statements in which he classified as “Nazis” the critics of the visit of the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Flávio Dino (PSB), to the Nova Holanda favela, in the north zone of Rio de Janeiro, on March 13.

For representatives of the state police forces, access by Lula’s minister (PT) to the site would be unfeasible without the authorization of leaders of the Comando Vermelho, which commands the favela of Nova Holanda. Dino entered the area dominated by the faction to participate in an event within the NGO Redes da Maré, which maintains a longstanding role in the Federal Supreme Court (STF) to reduce police operations in Rio de Janeiro.

For Piúma, who once commanded drug trafficking in Complexo do Alemão and currently calls himself an “ex-trafficker”, the criticisms made by people of a “Nazi” nature to Dino’s presence in Maré would have to do with prejudice against poor and marginalized people. A similar argument was used at the time by Lula’s minister to counter the criticism.

“The fanatical Bolsonarists, lunatics, Nazis, make a statement the way they think is best for them, which is to link the excellent Minister of Justice to crime”, said the president of the NGO Social Multiplication in a video published on the official NGO channel days after the Dino’s trip to Maré. Afterwards, he returns to labeling people of divergent political bias as Nazis when talking about politics in Brasilia. Then he goes on to criticize the presence of security forces in the communities.

The target of the questions raised by a series of public security specialists at the time of Lula’s minister’s visit to Maré did not have to do with the presence of a representative of public power in a poor community, but the circumstances in which this occurred. The region of Complexo da Maré, whose power is divided between the Comando Vermelho and the Terceira Comando Puro, accumulates several episodes of people being shot when they enter the place by mistake. It is worth noting that Dino’s portfolio includes the conduct of Public Security at the federal level, which would make him, in theory, a target of the factions.

Even so, the minister came and went without the need for a police operation. The day after the visit, the federal government launched the National Program for Public Security with Citizenship (Pronasci). The event, which was expected as the portfolio’s main bet to gear up actions to fight crime, did not bring any measures to combat drug trafficking. On the contrary, the opening of the event featured a presentation by representatives of the NGO Redes da Maré, criticizing police operations.

Leader of the “trafficking bunker” NGO made the entity available to receive Dino

In the same video, Piúma made his NGO available to also receive the minister and introduce him to the place that has been called Complexo de Israel, formed by five communities: Cidade Alta, Vigário Geral, Parada de Lucas, Cinco Bocas and Pica-pau .

In last Friday’s operation, civil police arrested ten drug dealers at the headquarters of the NGO chaired by the young man. Rifles, pistols and grenades were also found. The site was used by leaders of the Third Command Puro to store weapons and as a hiding place for drug dealers.

In a press conference after the operation, delegate Marcos Amim, head of the Narcotics Repression Police Station (DRE), said there was no doubt that those responsible for the NGO work for drug trafficking in the region. “[A construção do esconderijo] it was a major work. Impossible to do without the nuance of those responsible for this front NGO. Now we have material to put on paper that the main person in charge of the NGO, who was said to have given up drug trafficking, is still part of drug trafficking. He is still a key player in the criminal organization,” said the delegate.

A People’s Gazette contacted the official channels of the NGO Multiplicação Social, opening up space for positioning. As of this writing, there has been no response.