President of the PSDB-SP is accused by toucans of homophobic comments – 09/09/2023 – Panel

Municipal president of the São Paulo PSDB directory, Fernando Alfredo has been accused by members of his own party of having published a homophobic message in a WhatsApp group, which he denies.

On Friday (1st), during a discussion with Alfredo in a group called PSDB Renovação Real, driver Joel Alves published a photo he took with the governor of Rio Grande do Sul and president of the party, Eduardo Leite. In response to the image, Alfredo wrote: “he looked good in the pink mask, a nice tribute.”

Alves tells the Panel that she was wearing a pink mask and a bow of the same shade when she took the photo due to Pink October, an awareness campaign about the importance of prevention and early diagnosis of breast cancer. He states that he participates in related events annually because his wife had the disease, from which she was cured.

He also says that he regrets that Alfredo interpreted it “in evil”. In the group, he wrote “let’s stop here” after the municipal president’s comment.

The message from the PSDB-SP president was not challenged in the group and received a laughing emoji reaction. However, it was shared and repudiated in the following days by Tucano leaders, who saw a reference to Leite’s homosexuality.

National president of Diversidade Tucana, the nucleus for discussing LGBTQIA+ issues in the PSDB, Edgar Souza says it is “astonishing to see such homophobic aggression coming from a leader of the PSDB, a party absolutely committed to the fight for the population’s human and civil rights”.

“Recreational homophobia is deplorable and encourages a culture of prejudice and aggression. We hope the leader recants”, he adds.

In a note to the Panel, Alfredo vehemently denies that his message involved homophobia and says that he is proud to contribute intensely to the LGBTQIAPN+ movement within the PSDB for more than 20 years.

“Anything other than that is a lie and doesn’t make any sense. Only words of support for the movement and solidarity in the fight for their rights will come out of my mouth and my writing. The accusation of homophobia is more in the mind of those who read it, or rather , in the evil of those who count, with specific partisan interests and without any relationship with the defense of LGBTQIAPN+ rights”.

The leader classifies the criticism as a “true smokescreen of the real interests of dividing militancy and putting an end to the traditional Tucana intra-party democracy.”

“I will always be in defense of LGBTQIAPN+ rights. In defense of intra-party democracy and the most humble and popular militancy. I receive the question with surprise, but I continue fighting for my ideals”, he concludes.

The episode is part of a broader crisis between Alfredo and the state and national directorates of the PSDB. In recent years, Alfredo was an ally of João Doria and opposed Leite in party disputes, which led to clashes.

More recently, an executive committee of the state directory suspended the São Paulo municipal convention, scheduled for September 17th. Marco Vinholi, state president of the party, accepted the representation of members of the party, who claim that Alfredo had expelled members who did not agree with the management of the municipal directory.

Due to these accusations, according to Vinholi, the convention in the city of São Paulo tends to be partial and manipulated.

Alfredo has contested the accusations on the grounds that it is the state leaders who have manipulated the process to remove him from a process from which he would easily be re-elected. Therefore, he decided to keep the convention for September 17, despite the state directory’s suspension order. The prediction today is that the matter will end up in court.

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