Unionist José Ferreira da Silva, known as “Friar Chico”, who is vice president of one of the entities aimed at a Federal Police (PF) operation on Wednesday, 23, said police officers will investigate “all the slutty they have” at the National Institute of Social Security (INSS).
He is the older brother of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT). The PF investigates a billionaire fraud scheme in undue discounts on retirees and pensioners.
Since last year, Frei Chico has been part of the board of the National Union of Retirees, Pensioners and the Elderly (Sindnapi). He has been affiliated with the union since 2008. The Operation Without Discount, triggered by the PF and the Comptroller General of the Union (CGU) investigates 11 entities-including Sindnapi-who would participate in a scheme that discounted tuition without the knowledge of retirees and pensioners or that they thought to be mandatory. According to Lula’s brother, the union did not commit irregularities.
“I hope the Federal Police actually investigate all the slutty they have. Now, our union, I am sure we have nothing, we should not really. I hope that it actually investigates because there are many entities out there picks. Our union has already been investigated, it has already been made,” Frei Chico told Estadão. He also said he was on the board recently, so he could not go into detail about the PF operation.
In the Sindnapi Organogram, José Ferreira da Silva is number two of the entity’s operative national. Above him is only the CEO, Milton Baptista de Souza Filho, known as “Milton Horse”. To Estadão, Milton said the union did not suffer search and seizure.
Sindnapi, whose headquarters is in the city of São Paulo, released two notes after the operation of the PF. One of them comes out in defense of Frei Chico. “Formed mostly by former workers’ unions, the board brings together leaders with more than 25 years of experience in the Brazilian trade union movement. Among these names is José Ferreira da Silva, Frei Chico, current vice president of the entity. Frei Chico, brother of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has a respected trajectory in unionism. Metallurgist in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), and was one of the pioneers in the organization of workers in the ABC Paulista. He acted with courage during the military regime, being one of the firm voices in the struggle for redemocratization of Brazil and for the rights of political amnesties, ”says the note.
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According to the PF, discounts reached R $ 7.99 billion, and almost 100% of them were irregular. The entities formalized Technical Cooperation Agreements (ACT) with the INSS, which allowed the discount on sheet of the beneficiaries of the agency. In many cases the release was fraudulent.
CGU minister Vinicius de Carvalho said that a sample of retirees and pensioners was investigated, and the majority did not recognize that they have authorized the discounts.
For this, 1,300 beneficiaries were interviewed who had payroll discounts. In general, they did not identify the request for the benefit – they did not authorize – or said they believed “to be a mandatory discount.”
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In addition to Sindnapi, the operation of PF aimed the following entities:
- Contag (1994)
- Ambec (2017)
- Conafer (2017)
- AAPB (2021)
- Aapps Universe (2022)
- Unaspub (2022)
- APDAP PREV (previously called Account) (2022)
- ABCB/Amar Brasil (2022)
- CAAP (2022)
- AAPEN (previously called ABSP) (2023)
After the operation began, six public servants were removed from their duties. One of those who fell was the president of the INSS, Alessandro Stefanutto, who, as the Estadão column learned, resigned after Lula’s order. A federal policeman, who did not have his identity revealed, was also taken from office.
