Parliamentary Inquiry Commission, which ends on May 22, fueled local rivalry between deputy Arthur Lira and senator Renan Calheiros, both from Alagoas
Less than 1 month before the opening date, Braskem’s Senate CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry) was marked by political disputes between congressmen from the Northeast. The work of the commission created to investigate rock salt exploration in Maceió (AL), to date, has been overshadowed.
Since its installation, 5 months ago, the collegiate has met 13 times. In total, according to a survey by the Power360, the meetings, which include hearings and analysis of applications, only lasted around 28 hours. The collegiate’s operating period ends on May 22.
The CPI deadline can be extended, as long as there is a request signed by 27 senators. It is then up to the President of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), read the request in plenary. However, the Power360 found that, until now, no member had contacted Pacheco to discuss the matter.
CLASH BETWEEN CONGRESSIONALS FROM THE NORTHEAST
The request that called for the creation of Braskem’s CPI was an initiative of the senator Renan Calheiros (MDB-AL), which exercises great political influence in Alagoas. The emedebista is a political opponent of the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira, from PP, who is also from Alagoas. The two had disagreements and were competing for local power in the State.
Depending on the investigations, Lira’s popularity in her state could be affected.
In September last year, Renan obtained the support of 45 of the 81 senators for the opening of the commission in September. At least 27 signatures were required. The Senate created the CPI 1 month later, in October.
At the time, the collegiate worried members of the government. They feared that the CPI’s activities would spill over to Petrobras, which has 36.1% of participation at Braskem. The opposition in the Senate could, for example, summon politicians from corruption-related cases targeted by Operation Lava Jato.
With the CPI installed, the expectation was that Calheiros would be appointed rapporteur. However, the name was the target of criticism from congressmen. On December 4, Senator Rodrigo Cunha (Podemos-AL), said that the request to create the CPI had “vices” for having been presented by Calheiros and defended that the commission of inquiry be installed without his presence.
Cunha is an ally of Arthur Lira. Among the “vices” of the opening of the CPI mentioned by the senator, is the fact that Renan Calheiros presided, from 1993 and 1994, at the company Salgema – the previous name of one of the companies that gave rise to Braskem. He also mentioned that the senator’s son, the current Minister of Transport, Renan Filho, was governor of Alagoas in recent years.
The CPI was in fact only installed on December 13. The senator Omar Aziz (PSD-AM) was elected president and senator Jorge Kajuru (PSB-GO), vice. The commission postponed the choice of the rapporteur, as Calheiros’ name was not a consensus.
The next CPI meeting was held after the year-end Congress recess, on February 21. Despite Renan being the favorite, the senator Rogério Carvalho (PT-SE) was chosen to be the committee’s rapporteur. Carvalho was seen as a more neutral name to move forward with the investigation.
Calheiros decided to abandon the CPI. On the occasion, the senator from Alagoas stated that “hidden but visible hands” O “vetoed” of the rapporteur.
COMMISSION WORK
On February 27 of this year, rapporteur Rogério Carvalho presented the work plan to the commission. He established 3 axes for the investigation:
- 1st stage: Analysis of the history of mining-industrial activity involving the research and mining of rock salt in the region under investigation;
- 2nd stage: Investigation of the causes, sizing of liabilities, holding the company accountable and providing fair compensation to those affected;
- 3rd stage: Analysis of gaps and failures in the performance of inspection and control bodies and proposals for improvements in the legal and regulatory framework.
However the Power360 found that some senators have the feeling that the collegiate has made little progress in the investigation against Braskem. On February 28, the commission approved the summons, in which the presence is mandatory, of Braskem’s CEO, Roberto Bischoff. However, to date, the executive has not given a statement to the board.
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