Opposition gains survival in the CPMI of January 8

The opposition in the Joint Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPMI) on January 8 will have a new opportunity to advance its investigations when the collegiate resumes work in August, after the recess of Congress. Despite being a minority and facing resistance from the government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and part of the media, the oppositionists hope to present evidence of the possible omission or even collaboration of the Planalto with the acts of vandalism. They intend to do this by means of requests for information to federal bodies, approved by the collegiate last Tuesday (11), after an oversight by government supporters.

The opposition’s chance is given through the collegiate’s access to Lula’s flight plans during the weekend of the acts at Praça dos Três Poderes, as well as to the images from the security cameras of the Ministry of Justice. These requests were among the almost 100 approved in a block, by symbolic vote and agreement proposed by the president of the CPMI, deputy Arthur Maia (União Brasil-BA). With the delivery of these materials within an initial period of 10 days, the opposition hopes to strengthen the suspicion that the President of the Republic of omission in face of the absence of the federal security forces during the attacks, despite the warnings of the intelligence services, by leaving Brasilia and move to Araraquara (SP) to accompany the rescue of victims after heavy rains.

In addition, opposition parliamentarians are considering the possibility that videos from the Palace of Justice – headquarters of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security – prove Flávio Dino’s presence there on Sunday, as the minister himself revealed in an interview and later denied.

The CPMI was created at the insistence of the opposition, but so far it has not been able to establish its own path of investigation due to the resistance of the government supporters in going beyond the investigations conducted by the Federal Police (PF), Federal Public Ministry (MPF) and Federal Supreme Court (STF). ) about the events that took place in Praça dos Três Poderes.

Presence of Dino and absence of Lula will be investigated

After the allied base realized what had been approved, including the opposition’s requests, the CPMI rapporteur, Senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA), asked Maia to reverse the vote, but she was unsuccessful. One of the approved requests was that of Deputy André Fernandes (PL-CE), who seeks to obtain details on President Lula’s flight plan, including information on mobilization and deployment of security, especially during the 6th and 8th of January.

“The intervention in public security in the Federal District was decreed by the president from Araraquara. Thus, it is important to understand the circumstances that preceded the invasions and that led him to move out of the capital”, argued Fernandes.

The deputy requested documents containing the identification of all civil servants or public agents involved, a detailed description of the places frequented by Lula and any member of his entourage. He still wants the contacts of the president’s local security coordinator and the head of the Presidency’s Secretariat for Presidential Security (SPR). “Information is fundamental”, he underlined.

When asking for full access to the images from the Ministry of Justice’s internal and external cameras, from 6:00 am on January 8 to 11:59 pm on the same day, Fernandes highlighted that it is the CPMI’s role to help identify the individualization of the conduct of each of those involved in the invasion and depredation of the sites.

In addition to this, there is the request of Deputy Delegate Ramagem (PL-RJ) who requested from the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) details about the flight plans for the trip to Araraquara.

“The CPMI must unravel both the circumstances and those responsible for the acts that resulted in the acts, whether by action or omission”, he justified. Ramagem wants documents attesting to the date and time the travel request (round trip) was made, the route and any changes to the schedule, including scheduled stopovers and connections.

Oppositionists see advances as they place new orders

Senator Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE) expressed satisfaction with the approval of “important requirements for the advancement of investigations”. He highlighted the importance of the images from the Ministry of Justice and the flight plan of the Presidency of the Republic, relating them to the probable omission of the government on the day, despite Abin’s warnings, and to the fact that the president was rushed to São Paulo while Praça dos Três Poderes was being attacked.

The senator also mentioned the importance of requesting information about hotel guests during the acts to identify possible infiltrators and to understand the whereabouts of the National Security Force.

Girão regretted, however, that other requirements had been withdrawn from the CPMI agenda, such as the summoning of a photographer from a news agency to clarify his role in recording the invaders while committing acts of vandalism as if he were a “scene director”, and the identification of GSI employees seen in the images offering water to demonstrators during the invasion of the Planalto Palace.

Senator Izalci Lucas (PSDB-DF) claims that the CPMI should focus on omissions, which investigations have not been going on. He highlights the need to break Minister Flávio Dino’s telematic secrecy, present in many opposition requests that have already been rejected or not yet approved. He argues that, even though Dino called the governor of the Federal District and heard from him that “everything was under control”, the minister did not take measures based on the information he had since Friday and despite having the Presidential Guard Battalion to protect the palace.

“There was an action plan approved by the Supreme, Congress, Planalto and public security bodies that was not implemented, even knowing that something would happen”, he observed.

In the evaluation of deputy Evair Vieira de Melo (PP-ES), who is also part of the CPMI, the Federal Police (PF) and the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin) only work on behalf of the government in investigations, seeking information that justifies the rapporteur’s narrative. For him, the government, Dino, Abin and the Institutional Security Office (GSI) were aware of what would happen on Sunday, which suggests irresponsibility and negligence on the part of these institutions.

The deputy says he has a doubt to be clarified: whether Lula was informed on the night of the 7th or if he received the information on the morning of the 8th. In his opinion, Lula would have “fled from Brasilia”. He highlights the need to investigate the trip to Araraquara, considering that an operation of this type would involve dozens of people. For the parliamentarian, the government concealed facts, did not act to prevent the acts and contributed to Brazil not knowing “the truth about the 8th of January”.

Government supporters want to investigate financiers and shield Flávio Dino

In turn, Lula and Dino’s allies are betting on the siege of financiers of the January 8 invasions. In addition, most members of the CPMI are committed to incriminating former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) as the mastermind of an alleged coup plot. However, the testimonies so far have not brought new information and even raised suspicions of abuse by the judicial authorities against the prisoners.

On another front, Flávio Dino has the support of an active group within the collegiate, known as “Bancada do Dino”, to protect himself from the opposition’s attacks on the CPMI. These close members are important to protect the government’s and Dino’s interests in CPMI debates and investigations.

In addition to government members, especially those from leftist parties, the Minister of Justice also has close allies. Among them are Jandira Feghali (PcdoB-RJ) and the six Maranhão parliamentarians from her political group, led by Senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA). The group includes its own substitute, senator Ana Paula Lobato (PSB), as well as deputies Duarte Júnior (PSB), Amanda Gentil (PP), Aluísio Mendes (Republicans) and Rubens Pereira Júnior (PT).

Analysts bet on surprises before the end of the collegiate

According to politicians and analysts, even though two of the six months of the CPMI with a lot of uncertainty have already passed, the parliamentary commission could still surprise in the remaining two-thirds of the duration.

This Monday (17), the Folha de S. Paulo reported that Abin reports indicate that transport companies, companies involved in illegal mining and truck fleet owners participated in the January 8 acts in greater numbers than self-employed truck drivers. Documents delivered to the CPMI by the agency reveal that 272 cargo transport vehicles entered Brasília from November onwards to act in the demonstrations, half of which were legal entities and the rest with shareholdings in agricultural companies. In the report prepared in March and distributed to federal government agencies, Abin pointed out connections with a businessman who would have helped to raise money for the acts.

After the testimony of Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid, former President Jair Bolsonaro’s main assistant, in which he remained silent last Tuesday (11), the government supporters now expect that former Minister of Justice Anderson Torres will be heard in the first week after the parliamentary recess. They see this hearing as an opportunity to boost the thesis of alleged premeditation of a coup d’état, in case there is a possible confession by Torres or the breach of secrecy that reveals information in this sense.

In addition, Mauro Cid’s relatives are expected to be called to provide clarifications to the commission. The rapporteur, senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA), highlighted that the hearings are following a temporal sequence of the events that led to the acts that took place on January 8.

CPMI

Proposed by the opposition, on the initiative of Deputy André Fernandes (PL-CE), the commission had its installation prevented by several maneuvers by the government in partnership with the President of Congress, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG). With a sufficient number of signatures and the pressure generated by the revelation of the images with the presence of the former Minister of the Institutional Security Office (GSI), General Marco Gonçalves Dias, responsible for the security of the Palace, interacting with its invaders, the government radically changed the strategy and managed to impose a majority on the minority instrument.

In the formation of the commission, the mayor, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), indicated an ally with capacity for dialogue, deputy Arthur Maia (União-BA), who has been seeking to maintain neutrality, preventing greater damage to the opposition’s performance , but guaranteeing the work plan of the government rapporteur, senator Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA).

On June 14, Maia met with the Minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Alexandre de Moraes, responsible for the investigation that investigates the acts of January 8, to request the sharing of data from the Federal Police (PF) investigations. Eliziane hoped that requests would subsidize the performance of her team, which brings together technicians from the Senate, the Revenue and two federal delegates. However, Minister Moraes has been cautious in the release. Oppositionists, in turn, complain of selectivity in sending Abin data, only in favor of the government.