Opinion on Bolsonaro’s nominee to head Petrobras should come out on Friday

The internal committee responsible for the analysis of nominees to Petrobras’ senior management should meet on Friday (24) to issue an opinion on the nomination of Caio Paes de Andrade to the company’s presidency.

According to Petrobras, the complete package of information about the executive was received this Tuesday (21). The expectation is that the opinion will be analyzed by the board of directors at the beginning of next week.

If the name is approved, Paes de Andrade will assume the leadership of the state-owned company before the shareholders’ meeting that will elect the new board appointed by President Jair Bolsonaro (PL). The process of change in command was accelerated by the resignation of José Mauro Coelho this Monday (20).

Called the Eligibility Committee, the group responsible for analyzing the nominations is formed by two board members from the state-owned company, Francisco Petros and Luiz Henrique Caroli, and two external members, Ana Silvia Matte and Tales Bronzatto.

To evaluate the name of Paes de Andrade, he will receive reinforcement from another representative of the minority shareholders, the counselor Marcelo Mesquita.

Known as “background integrity check”, the work of the Eligibility Committee process includes not only the evaluation of the curriculum, it also investigates whether candidates are subject to lawsuits, have debts or have acted in political parties, for example.

This process was instituted after the approval of the State-Owned Companies Law, currently the target of criticism from government allies, such as the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), with the aim of shielding the company against political interference.

Lira defends changes in the law through a provisional measure, which would come into effect immediately after its enactment, facilitating changes in the company’s board of directors.

There were questions about the suitability of Paes de Andrade for the position, who would not have the required experience in the oil sector or in companies the size of Petrobras, since he built his career in a startup accelerator.

While Paes de Andrade is not appointed to the position, the company has been chaired by the director of Exploration and Production, Fernando Borges, a Petrobras employee for 38 years and appointed to the board by General Joaquim Silva e Luna.

The government must also face questions in the evaluation of the list of nominees to the board of directors, formed mostly by holders of public offices, with the aim of having a group more aligned with Bolsonaro.

The most controversial case is that of Jonathas Assunção, executive secretary of the Civil House. The law prohibits the appointment of a holder of a position “of a special nature or of superior management and advice in public administration”.

Number two in the portfolio led by federal deputy Ciro Nogueira (PP), one of the leaders of the center, Assunção is the first occupant of the Planalto Palace appointed to the Petrobras board since the Dilma Rousseff government.