Simone Tebet sees no problem with Lula getting friends in government

The Minister of Planning, Simone Tebet, one of the arms of the Economy in the current administration of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), said she does not see that there is political interference coming from the president. In an interview with CNN Brasil, the former senator cites as an example Petrobras and the attempt to hire Guido Mantega at Vale, an option that was not well received by shareholders at the time. For her, it was an attempt by the president to place a “partner to whom Lula is grateful.”

According to the minister, from the moment the PT member sees the figure of former minister Mantega as a partner and tries to place him in the economy or politics, it becomes the president’s right.

“President Lula would not be President Lula if he did not have the ability to recognize his friends and want his friends on his side. Guido Mantega was a partner of President Lula, the president is grateful to Guido Mantega for a series of issues, and wants Being with Guido Mantega in the political process is part of President Lula’s personality”, highlighted Tebet.

After the failure to place Mantega at Vale, news emerged that Lula’s former minister was joining the board of Braskem, a company with direct participation from Petrobras. Despite this, the President of the Republic’s insistence or possible attacks do not bother her.

“He has his ideological and party-political positions that are different from mine, but when he realizes that when he tries to express his thoughts there is a reaction, in the market or even in the political class, that is negative for the government itself, he has the ability to step back,” she said.

Despite suggesting that Lula backs down when there is adverse reactions, Tebet states that there are no problems with a president elected by the people speaking what he thinks and trying to implement what he thinks. “In a democracy, we have political forces that balance this scale”, highlighted the minister.