See questions that may be asked to Gonet on Saturday – 12/11/2023 – Power

Appointed by President Lula (PT) to the position of Attorney General of the Republic, Paulo Gonet should pass without difficulty the hearing scheduled by the Senate for this Wednesday (13).

Its approval is already taken for granted both among senators linked to the government and the opposition who are part of the CCJ (Constitution and Justice Commission) and were heard by the Sheet.

The rapporteur for his nomination and government leader in the Senate, Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), presented a favorable opinion and said that Gonet “demonstrates professional experience, adequate technical training and intellectual and moral affinity”.

During the hearing, he should be questioned about delicate topics, such as his conservative position on customs issues and his view on the level of independence of the body, responsible for investigating politicians with jurisdiction in the STF (Supreme Federal Court), including the President of the Republic. If approved, the mandate of the new PGR will run until 2025.

As a representative of the Public Ministry at the TSE (Superior Electoral Court), Gonet displeased both allies of Lula and Jair Bolsonaro (PL).

During last year’s elections, he was criticized for allegedly permissive actions in relation to the former president’s candidacy. This year, with Lula already at the Palácio do Planalto, he defended the ex-president’s ineligibility due to the meeting held by him in Alvorada in which lies were propagated in relation to the electoral system — Bolsonaro was condemned by the TSE.

Flávio Dino, nominated for the STF (Supreme Federal Court), will also be questioned on Wednesday, simultaneously with Gonet, in a superficial and unprecedented format for the positions.

Independence of the MPF

The PGR was criticized by the political class for having allegedly acted in favor of political groups and in persecution of others during the Lava Jato operation.

The operation, which initially had broad support from the STF (Supreme Federal Court) and public opinion, accumulated several legal and political setbacks from 2018 onwards.

Questions to Gonet: What is your position in relation to the PGR’s role in Lava Jato? Do you consider that the institution was instrumentalized at the height of the operation?

Conservatism and defense of minorities

Lula’s chosen one is a practicing Catholic and has already adopted several positions that go against the PT. His more conservative positions began to be exposed in 2009, when he wrote an article criticizing abortion rights.

In 2019, when he spoke to Bolsonaro in search of the nomination for the PGR, Gonet said he was against the criminalization of homophobia by the STF and that the court invades the powers that belong to the Legislature when deciding on the issue.

Questions to Gonet: What is your view on controversial topics under analysis by the Supreme Court, such as abortion and drugs? Was any commitment made with Palácio do Planalto around these themes?

How will you act to guarantee the rights of minorities, social and human rights provided for in the Constitution?

8/1 prisoners and CPI report

Gonet must be questioned by opposition senators about the situation of prisoners as a result of the coup attacks on the headquarters of the three Powers on January 8th. Those involved were reported by the MPF (Federal Public Ministry).

Last month, a 46-year-old defendant died at the Papuda Penitentiary Complex, in Brasília. According to a document from the Criminal Executions Court, he “had a sudden illness while sunbathing.”

The Public Defender’s Office complains about Minister Alexandre de Moraes, rapporteur of the STF case, for refusing to respond to requests that they consider fundamental for the broad defense of those represented.

On the other hand, senators who participated in the CPI that investigated the acts of January 8th maintain that the PGR has a fundamental role in preserving democracy and demand the presentation of complaints based on the final report of the parliamentary investigation.

Questions to Gonet: How should you act in relation to the situation of those arrested on January 8th who are without access to their files? What about those who say they received harsh sentences, without individualizing their conduct in the complaints presented by the MPF?

What do you intend to do with the indictments suggested in the 8/1 CPI?

Do you intend to maintain the working group at the PGR constituted by your predecessor, Augusto Aras, to continue the investigations?

Braskem Agreement

Senators should question what the PGR intends to do about the agreements signed with Braskem and to compensate families who lived in the Maceió region affected by a company mine.

According to the MPF, around 14 thousand properties were directly affected by the subsidence of the soil caused by the company’s mining activities in the capital of Alagoas.

Ask Gonet: What do you intend to do to follow up on the agreements signed by the MPF as a result of the sinking of the Braskem mine?

Action in criminal matters at the STF

The Planalto Palace nominee for the position of PGR has a professional career dedicated mainly to constitutional law. Senators want to know what Gonet thinks about criminal investigations against authorities with forum prerogative in the STF.

Ask Gonet: In the name of alleged social peace, Aras made statements that members of the Public Ministry should not criminalize politics. And he concluded his term of leniency with Bolsonaro’s undemocratic outbursts. What do you think about the criminal activities of the PGR?

Statement signed by the police

Members of the MPF criticize the possibility of police corporations entering into collaborations with criminal suspects. The issue came up recently after the Federal Police reached an agreement with Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro’s former aide-de-camp.

Ask Gonet: Do you agree that police corporations have the power to enter into plea bargains?

Triple list

Gonet did not make his name available to his colleagues in the internal triple list process promoted by the ANPR (National Association of Public Prosecutors). Like Augusto Aras, he articulated his nomination with the president’s allies from the outside.

Ask Gonet: What do you think about choosing names outside the triple list?

Understand the functions and choice of the Attorney General of the Republic

What does the Attorney General of the Republic do?
He is the head of the Union Public Ministry, representing the MPF before the STF and the STJ, and responsible for investigations and complaints against politicians with special jurisdiction

What is the time mandate?
Two years, with no limit on the number of reappointments; the president can choose any public prosecutor over 35 years old for the position

How does naming work?
The first step is the appointment of the President of the Republic, who receives a non-binding triple list. Afterwards, the nominee participates in a hearing at the Senate’s CCJ, and must have his name approved by the commission and then by the House plenary by an absolute majority — 41 senators

What is the triple list for the PGR?
The ANPR holds an election every two years to define who members of the category most want in the Attorney General’s Office. The three most voted make up a triple list sent to the president, who can use it to nominate a name for the position; the list is just a suggestion to the Chief Executive

How will the hearing take place? Gonet?
After negotiations between the government and the Senate, the hearings of Gonet and Flávio Dino, Lula’s nominee to the STF, will be carried out at the same time by the CCJ; senators will be able to ask questions to both candidates simultaneously; Afterwards, the names will be voted