Opinion – Rômulo Saraiva: Does Lula’s arrival interfere with the review of lifetime pensions?

If the political scenario influenced the decisions of the Federal Supreme Court, can the arrival of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) as new president in 2023 help in the judgment of the review of life?

In principle not. The STF ministers have autonomy and judge according to their convictions, considering the independence between the three powers.

Currently, the process is pending judgment in the office of the rapporteur minister André Mendonça and there is no prediction of when it will occur. However, it is undeniable that the political game can sensitize the Judiciary, especially in matters of social relevance.

Ministers are human beings and to a greater or lesser degree they have a predilection for certain political figures over others. Although they shouldn’t, but this is a variable that can make up the judgment. In fact, no one will ever know if she was considered or not. But it must be remembered that some ministers only reached this position thanks to the appointment of the President of the Republic. There is always the feeling of debt for the gesture of the past.

By the way, of the eleven current court ministers, seven were appointed in the Workers’ Party government. And until October of next year, with the retirement of Ricardo Lewandowski and Rosa Weber, Lula will have the opportunity to appoint two more, totaling nine ministers sworn in in the PT administration, against two who took up their positions in the government of President Jair Bolsonaro (PL).

Thus, apparently, what happens in the presidential succession would not have any relevance in the judgment of a social security issue. But it can be. Not only for these personal and subjective inclinations of each minister, in addition to the merits of the issue, but also for the economic result that the issue carries. Although all retirees who seek revisional have previously contributed for what they are pursuing, and therefore the revision was self-funded, the recognition of the right incurs a cost.

Exercising what goes on in the minds of ministers, this cost can be thought of as a judgment variable: in a less republican way of thinking, as a way of indirectly retaliating against the head of state for institutional disagreements or an opportunity to generate popularity, since the The review is fair, has prior financial backing and has strong social appeal, which is in line with the profile of the new government, whose campaign promise is even based on the salary appreciation of retirees.

In times when President Jair Bolsonaro declared war on several STF ministers, this frayed institutional climate may have been a substantial ingredient in the decision of these ministers. After all, the financial impact of a court decision hinders the economic planning of the Union, which needs to pay the bill. Indirectly, the decisions issued by the STF, especially those with great economic impact, affect the government’s political planning.

With the change of the President of the Republic soon, if the trial is not finalized this year, the new president must harmonize institutional relations with the STF. In this path, the recognition of the review of life can be, in the view of some ministers, the first step in an affirmative action to reaffirm values ​​such as social justice for workers and retirees.

It is important to note that the law already allows STF ministers to assess the political impact of a process. In demand with a constitutional bias, the social, political, economic or legal relevance – which transcends the subjective interests of the cause and has the clout to reach an expressive collectivity as in the case of the whole life review – are aspects that can and should be evaluated by each minister. .

It cannot be forgotten that the legal foundations of the lifetime review are extremely solid, not to mention that every worker who seeks the review has already paid for it. But apart from the legal aspect and the merits of the matter, it should not be ignored that these other external aspects can influence the decision still pending, including the arrival of a new president to power.