The federal government has decided to suspend all technical cooperation agreements (ACTs) signed with entities responsible for associative discounts on the payroll and INSS pensioners. The decision was published on Tuesday (29) and is another unfolding of the crisis that reaches the social security system, after revelations of.
The measure, signed by the substitute director of the INSS, Debora Floriano, temporarily suspends the ACTs until there is a complete reevaluation of their legality, compliance with the current rules and eventual transfer of values to the entities involved. The text also determines a complete audit by the benefits, governance and general audit.
The decision occurs after the removal and later, Alessandro Stefanutto, by the Federal Police, with the endorsement of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT). Stefanutto was the target of the “Discount” operation, launched on April 23, which investigates an improper collection scheme of associative monthly fees based on false or nonexistent authorizations.
Billionaire fraud and luxury trips
According to the Federal Police and the Comptroller General of the Union (CGU), the scheme may have diverted up to R $ 6.3 billion from the benefits paid to retired and pensioners. In many cases, entities used counterfeit signatures to make discounts. Some did not even have the structure to offer the services they claimed to provide.
One of the emblematic cases involves retired lawyer and servant Cecília Rodrigues Mota ,. According to the PF, between January and November 2024, she made 33 trips, including for international destinations such as Dubai, Paris and Lisbon. The investigation found that individuals and companies linked to Cecilia received about $ 14 million of associative entities and intermediate companies.
CGU report points out that the Association of National Retirees and Pensioners (AAPEN) and the Association of Retirees and Pensioners of Brazil (AAPB) – both led by Cecilia – operated simultaneously at the same address in Fortaleza (CE), suggesting a unique structure artificially divided to increase the revenue base.
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Political pressure and government reaction
Faced with the repercussion, Senator Damares Alves (Republicans-DF) presented one, Carlos Lupi, accusing him of omission. It claims that the minister ignored alerts about irregularities in discounts.
Lupi, in turn, denies any direct responsibility and stated that “.” He also stated that he was “hurting in the flesh” to see people of his confidence involved in the scandal, but ensured that investigations were requested by their own management.
With the suspension of the agreements, the government is trying to demonstrate reaction and initiate an institutional review process that reaches the foundations of the cooperation model between the INSS and retirement associations – today under serious suspicion of misuse.
