Curitiba
Leading the defense of Senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR), lawyer Gustavo Bonini Guedes says that a “dangerous precedent” would be created in the Electoral Tribunal if former judge Lava Jato were impeached based on the arguments presented by PL and PT.
The two acronyms have filed an appeal with the TRE (Regional Electoral Court) of Paraná at the end of 2022. There is the expectation that the Aije (judicial electoral investigation action), which also requests Moro’s ineligibility, may be judged in February, after changing court judges.
“Not being able to grasp anything in the electoral campaign, they created in the pre-campaign the thesis of the abuse of economic power, which did not exist before. And the warning I make is the following: creating a precedent like this in the Electoral Tribunal will cause more people on the front lines,” says the lawyer, who has worked in the field of election law for 20 years, in an interview with Sheet this Wednesday (24th).
“Since the Electoral Court relies on precedents and jurisprudence, this will reflect. In line with what the PT itself wants [no caso Moro]Lula’s event in Sao Paulo should be included in Lula’s pre-campaign report [Guilherme] Boulos”, compare.
Guedes denies that Moro’s excessive spending occurred in the run-up to the formal 2022 election campaign and argues that there should be an in-depth, “spend by spend” analysis to eliminate expenses that, in his opinion, cannot be included in the list of the pre-campaign expenses incurred by the Podemos and União Brasil parties. “PT and PL have never spent money on expenses. You have to put a magnifying glass on it,” says the lawyer.
Moro joined Podemos in 2021 with an eye on the presidential race. But, as the deadline for party changes approached in 2022, he abandoned Podemos, announcing his affiliation with União Brasil and his candidacy for the Senate. Therefore, the opposition parties point out that the pre-campaign expenses, initially intended for the dispute for the Palácio do Planalto, have become “disproportionate” and “suppressed the possibilities of other competitors” for the Paraná Senate.
“I don’t believe it, but if Moro is impeached, Moro will leave politics, but politics continues to exist. Other opponents will be chosen for the battle. The enemies will be renewed. If the TSE impeaches Moro, in these municipal elections this precedent will be used to disenfranchise more people,” Guedes says.
PRE-CAMPAIGN
Moro’s lawyer says that there is a list of acts that can be carried out by parties before the official campaign, without them being identified as advance electoral propaganda, but that there is no “pre-campaign” rule.
“How much can I spend, what can I spend, when it’s the pre-campaign. It’s not there. It’s a legislative vacuum. When you let the Judiciary fill this legislative vacuum, sometimes the decisions are not the best,” he says, when argues that the National Congress should look into the issue.
According to him, an amount equal to 30% of the electoral ceiling would be reasonable. The parameter is contained in an opinion given to União Brasil by Moro’s lawyer and deputy, Luis Felipe Cunha, together with Guedes. He also states that the case against Moro can shed light on the pre-campaign issue, which, in his opinion, is little analyzed.
Furthermore, he claims that only expenses incurred in the constituency of dispute (in Paraná) and which have brought some electoral benefit (for the Senate candidacy) can be taken into consideration. ” Podemos paid Moro to travel to the Northeast to visit the statue of Father Cícero, accompanied by the senator [Eduardo] Girão, from Ceará. Is it a trip that interests voters here in Ubiratã, Paraná?”, he comments.
The spending should also have a relevant electoral connection. It excludes, for example, the purchase of armored vehicles intended “solely for the transportation and safety of the member.” Finally, he also contests the expenses which apparently cover a group of pre-candidates, in a generic way. The expense should be identified individually.
SELMA CASE
Although the electoral legislation does not expressly address the “pre-campaign” period, the jurisprudence opened by the recent “Selma case” has been highlighted among those who defend Moro’s impeachment. But for Guedes the cases are not comparable.
“Few people know more about this case than me – I worked on his case – and there is no point in making comparisons. What he requested the most was a loan that he asked for from his deputy. In Moro’s case, it is 100 percent money % coming from political parties, as required by legislation. There is no money from private individuals,” he says, adding that he respects the TSE’s decision in the judge’s case, but that he does not agree.
With 6 votes against 1, the TSE (Higher Electoral Court) revoked the mandate of judge Selma (Podemos-MT) at the end of 2019, finding that there had been an abuse of economic power and also an illicit collection of campaign-related funds election of 2018. The conclusion was that there was an omission of significant amounts used to pay election expenses in the pre-election period.
JUDGMENT
The senator’s defense also says that he is interested in dealing with the trial of the case soon, but that it is also necessary to be cautious, suggesting that the ideal is to wait for the new composition of the TRE – 2 of the 7 members of the TRE. The regional court will complete its mandate this January, including that of the current president. They also leave two alternates, called to intervene in the absence of full members.
“I prefer to judge with a judge chosen by President Lula, and I know the seriousness of the names on the triple list, rather than judging in the last session of a judge. The important thing is not to judge when the lights of the warrants go out”, claims Guedes .
The new president of the court will take over in February. The definition of who will replace judge Thiago Paiva dos Santos is up to Lula, on the basis of a triple list currently in the hands of the TSE. The court is expected to send the triple list to Lula in February.
As of Wednesday evening, Aije’s rapporteur on the TRE, Judge Luciano Carrasco Falavinha Souza, had not yet placed the case on the college’s voting agenda. Guedes says Falavinha treated the case with “seriousness and attention.”
REPLACEMENT OFFICE
In addition to the abuse of economic power, PT and PL argue that there are signs of corruption in some of Moro’s pre-campaign spending. They refer above all to a contract signed between União Brasil and the office of lawyer Luis Felipe Cunha, who later became Moro’s first deputy.
In this case, the value of the contract, of R$ 1 million for a duration of four months, and the fact that Cunha has no experience in the electoral field were highlighted.
In December, in a statement to the rapporteur of the case, Moro explained that the amount also covered payments to the office of Guedes, who would not be hired directly by União Brasil due to resistance from the party’s president, Luciano Bivar.
Questioned by Sheet, Guedes confirms the version and says that there are no illegalities in the subcontracting and that it “was not done secretly”. “The party had communicated that they would not hire me because I had signed against the PSL [hoje União Brasil] an action for disaffiliation for just cause of Joice Hasselmann”.
“Someone in there said. If someone used Bivar’s name because they don’t like me, I don’t know. I respect Bivar, I have nothing against him. But I understood that the resistance was understandable,” he says.
According to Guedes, the alternative found, and which would have received the support of the party itself, was the partnership with Cunha’s office, which intended to start working in the electoral field. Without indicating values, Guedes claims to have received a significant part of the payment of R$250,000 per month and to have produced dozens of documents together with Cunha, both for the party and for Moro’s defense.
Guedes also criticizes the inclusion of legal fees in the pre-campaign bill drawn up by the parties. “If the election legislation requires it, I don’t need to hire a lawyer [efeito de cálculo sobre] campaign limit, why will I add it to the pre-campaign? It makes absolutely no sense.”
X-RAYS | Gustavo Bonini Guedes, 41 years old
Lawyer, member-consultant of the Electoral Law Commission of the Federal Council of the OAB, member of Abradep (Brazilian Academy of Electoral and Political Law) and former president of Iprade (Paraná Institute of Electoral Law).
2024-01-25 02:02:00
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