There are no winners or losers, says Lira after Petrobras president resigns

One of the main defenders of the departure of José Mauro Coelho from the command of Petrobras, the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), said this Monday (20) there are no “winners, nor losers” in recent episodes involving the state-owned company. .​

The demonstration takes place a few hours before a meeting with party leaders from the base scheduled to discuss measures to be taken after the fuel price readjustment announced by Petrobras on Friday (17).

In a social network, Lira said that there is nothing to “celebrate in recent events involving Petrobras.” “There are no winners, no losers. There is only the drama of the people, the vulnerable and the urgency of the fuel issue,” she wrote.

“The time is for everyone to be humble, it is time for everyone to think of everyone and everyone to think of each one”, he continued. “Intransigence is not the best way. But we will not admit it. Greed is not above the Brazilian people.”

The president of Petrobras resigned this Monday morning, after the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) intensified pressure on the executive over the weekend.

On May 24, Bolsonaro announced that he would change the command of the state-owned company and nominated the then secretary of Debureaucratization of the Ministry of Economy, Caio Mário Paes de Andrade, to replace the current president of the company.

Lira was one of the main critics of Coelho’s management at the state-owned company. On Friday, after the announcement of the price increase, he said that the executive was “slutting” and said he was “going to the dick” to “review everything about prices” of fuel.

Later, in an interview with Globo News, Lira defended Petrobras’ “absurd profit taxation”, without detailing how the proposal to tax gains would be. The readjustment announced by the state-owned company took place after 99 days without increases.

In an article published in Sheethe said that the presidency of Petrobras was “hijacked by an illegitimate president, who does not represent the majority shareholder and practices corporate terrorism as a personal vendetta against the President of the Republic”.

Allies of Palácio do Planalto and Lira maintain the plan to carry out discussions on projects that may change taxation or rules for the state-owned company. The message they want to get across is that Congress is looking for ways to ease the pressure on prices.

One of the proposals that should be debated is by the leader of the PL in the Chamber, Altineu Côrtes (RJ), who prioritizes the domestic market over oil exports. The idea is that before exporting the product, it is offered, under the same conditions and values, to refining companies operating in Brazil.

Another of the ideas that had been aired, the creation of a CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry) lost strength after Coelho left Petrobras, in the opinion of party leaders.

With the resignation, House leaders believe that the retaliation package should be softened. But they are unlikely to shelve all the measures suggested by Lira.

Deputies from the ideological wing of the government and the PL must insist on the proposal sponsored by Bolsonaro to open an investigation into the management of Petrobras. The opposition in the Chamber and also in the Senate is studying proposing the creation of the CPI, aligning itself with Bolsonaro in a very unusual move in politics.

Ala do centrão wants to stop the investigation because of the risk of wear and tear to the Planalto Palace. As an argument, they say that after the resignation, the Chamber is better off focusing on proposals that will ease prices.

Last Wednesday (15), Congress concluded the vote on a bill that establishes a ceiling for ICMS rates on fuels, one of the measures to try to contain the escalation of prices and to reduce the wear and tear of the issue on President Jair Bolsonaro. less than four months before the elections.

This Monday, the CCJ (Constitution and Justice Commission) of the Chamber votes on the admissibility of the PEC (Proposed Amendment to the Constitution) that seeks to maintain a favored regime for biofuels.