The governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema (Novo), countered a criticism made by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) during an event to sign the BR-381/MG concession contract, on Wednesday, 22. President and members of the Lula government have exchanged public barbs with the head of the Minas Gerais state executive over the state’s debt renegotiation program with the Union.
At the time, Lula stated: “What we did for states that did not pay debts, perhaps only Jesus Christ would do if he ran for President of the Republic of this country.”
Zema countered. “President Lula, Jesus Christ would forgive all debts and would never charge abusive interest from those who help build Brazil”, said the governor of Minas Gerais, this Thursday, 23. “We will honor all our obligations, but we hope that the deputies will overturn the vetoes on Propag to bring justice and predictability to the State.”
The discussion takes place in the midst of the State Debt Payment Program (Propag), which seeks to renegotiate more than R$760 billion in debts owed by federal units to the Union. Approximately 90% of the amount corresponds to the debts of four states: Goiás, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul.
Zema has been publicly criticizing the program. Lula said that the state manager made a “profound and unnecessary” statement about Propag. In the president’s opinion, Zema should give him a reward for the agreement, and that the word “thank you” is simple, but to say it, you need to have greatness.
The measure provides for debt payment within 30 years, adjusted by the IPCA – currently at 4.5% per year – plus a rate between 2% and 4%, depending on the contract. Currently, interest is 4% plus the IPCA or Selic, which is 12.25% per year.
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The law was recently sanctioned, but with 13 vetoes by President Lula, which provoked discomfort and criticism from state governors, especially Zema.
According to Zema, the “mutilation” of the approved text imposes additional costs on the State, while the federal government “maintains 39 ministries, promotes luxurious trips and applies 100 years of secrecy to the president’s card”.
Lula went so far as to classify five governors as “ungrateful” for criticizing the vetoes on the project to renegotiate the States’ debts with the Union.
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“The governors, who are five largest and who owe the most and who are ungrateful because they should be thanking the federal government and the National Congress, criticized because some do not want to pay. From now on, they will pay”, said the president, in reference to governors Cláudio Castro (PL), from Rio de Janeiro; Eduardo Leite (PSDB), from Rio Grande do Sul; Romeu Zema, from Minas Gerais; Ronaldo Caiado (União), from Goiás; and Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), from São Paulo.
