Lula calculates wear and tear and seeks out ministers to discuss Jaques' situation
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) calculates the strain on the federal government generated by the PF (Federal Police) operation against senator Jaques Wagner (PT-BA) and sought palace ministers throughout Thursday (18) to address the issue. The meetings took place at Palácio da Alvorada, the official residence of the Presidency.
A wing of the Palácio do Planalto assesses that the operation damages the image and political articulation of the federal administration and defends that Jaques be replaced in the leadership of the government in the Senate. But the assessment prevails that Lula should only make a decision after a personal conversation with the parliamentarian and other allies.
Lula had a first telephone conversation with Jaques Wagner on Thursday, but prefers to wait for a presidential meeting to deliberate the matter, according to aides. The president's agenda is full of commitments in the Southeast in the coming days, and the meeting should be held next week.
The president's interlocutors indicate that Planalto was prepared to refute allegations about Bahian PT's connections with the Banco Master case, but was surprised by the operation against the senator.
Jaques Wagner and his family were search and seizure targets this Thursday. The senator is suspected of having received undue advantages from Banco Master. In a note, the parliamentarian denies acting in favor of this or any other financial institution.
PT aligns speech
The PT aligned its speech after the PF operation, and the main message to be disseminated by the militants will be that any revelation is the responsibility of the parliamentarian and not of President Lula.
The idea is to individualize Jaques Wagner or any other ally who may be mentioned in the investigations and preserve the president, who is running for re-election this year.
According to CNN, the PT decided that it will continue using the Banco Master case in its communication and on social media. The message to be conveyed is that Lula will face Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) in the presidential race and it is the opponent who has direct links with people involved in financial fraud.
In the coming days, parliamentarians and leaders should intensify the dissemination of revelations involving Flávio's visit to Vorcaro and the audio in which the senator demanded resources from the banker for the film "Dark Horse". It will also be remembered that the opponent called Vorcaro a "scumbag".
PT President, Edinho Silva stated this Thursday that the senator is a "repositor of trust", but said that the party supports "all investigations involving Banco Master".
"The crimes committed need to be investigated and those responsible punished. In this investigation and investigation process, we are confident that Jaques Wagner will clarify all the facts, proving his innocence", he wrote.
The PT's communications secretary, Éden Valadares, reinforced the party's "confidence" in Jaques Wagner and stated that "an attempt to equate relations and falsely create the idea that the scandal affects all Brazilian political fields equally is harmless."
Secretization of operation against government leader and former partner of Vorcaro falls; see | LIVE CNN
Source: CNN