PT leadership defends Jaques Wagner, but distrust grows in the party
Edinho Silva, national president of the PT, declared this Thursday (18) that senator Jaques Wagner (PT-BA) is the "repository" of all the party's "trust" and that his innocence will be proven. The statement came after the PF (Federal Police) launched an operation that targeted Wagner, in the context of investigations related to Banco Master.
Despite the public support of some party leaders, Clarissa Oliveira's investigation, on CNN Prime Time, revealed that, behind the scenes, the climate is very different. According to CNN, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) had called Wagner not only to offer support, but to ask for explanations about the investigation.
In addition to Lula, other PT members would also have asked the same question, subject to reservations. Publicly, figures such as minister Dario Durigan came to the senator's defense, but the private conversations revealed marked distrust.
A figure described as very close to Lula reported to Clarissa Oliveira that the climate of tension around Wagner had already been established previously, following speculation about alleged payments to the parliamentarian's daughter-in-law.
"Since that story about his daughter-in-law, there was already a somewhat tense atmosphere within the party because of that story. And now the picture actually seems a little more complicated", this interlocutor was quoted as saying.
An important leader within the PT would have made a clear distinction when commenting on the case with the journalist. According to this interlocutor, "no one will accuse Jaques Wagner prematurely" and everyone will give him space to defend himself.
However, the same leader reportedly said: "It's one thing for a PT leader or a party leader to find himself involved in some major controversy, some major scandal, when he is representing a party project and is carrying out our project. It's another thing to receive personal advantages. If this is the case, I feel completely exempt from making any defense of Jaques Wagner, no matter his history within the PT."
Clarissa Oliveira pointed out that it is still too early to say whether the PT and Lula are in fact convinced by Wagner's explanations. However, a concrete conclusion emerges from the situation: by not being removed immediately after the conversation with Lula, Wagner received a "survival". The assessment is that there was a decision to wait for the investigations to progress before taking any more drastic measures.
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Source: CNN