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The first testimonials collected by contrary to the version defended so far by the government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) that the management of the petista was responsible for discovering and interrupting the improper deviations in the benefits of retirees.
On the contrary, what emerges is the fact that the government – in particular the Ministry of Social Security and the INSS – knew of problems since the beginning of the current term, in 2023. But not only did not interrupt the transfers to the entities, but defended the continuity of discounts on retirement.
Former INSS President defended entities
Last Thursday (4), a. At the meeting, she talked about a meeting last August with the then president of the INSS, Alessandro Stefanutto. At the time, CGU had already completed an audit showing that most discounts were improper.
“My question is: why, after this discovery of 97% of the sample with irregular discount, wasn’t it recommended immediately?” Asked Deputy Adriana Ventura (Novo-SP).
“The INSS argument (at the time, under Alessandro Stefanutto) is: ‘I will leave my retirees without health insurance, without funeral aid. These entities are providing this to the retired’,” narrated the CGU audit. According to her, the CGU was still finding at the time if the entities actually rendered this type of service.
The agency asked the INSS to suspend transfers in cases where it was clear that there was no service, she said.
Current No. 2 of the Ministry of Social Security knew of deviations
Still at the end of last month, the INSS CPMI listened, as its first witness, the public defender Patrícia Bettin Chaves, who is coordinator of Social Security Affairs at the Federal Public Defender’s Office (DPU).
She spoke to CPMI about the performance of the Interinstitutional Working Group (GTI), created in February 2024, with representatives of the Federal Public Prosecution Service (MPF), the Attorney General of the Union (AGU), the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) and the Ministries of Social Security and Social Development, in addition to the CGU, the INSS and the DPU itself. This group was mission to ascertain undue discounts.
One of the group’s members was the current executive secretary of the Ministry of Social Security, Adroaldo da Cunha Portal.
“If he was inside this group, which was discussing the undue discounts (…), if he worked now with Wolney (Queiroz, current Minister of Social Security), who was already executive secretary in the ministry… How did he not take this to Wolney?”, Asks Deputy Marcel Van Hattem (Novo-RS).
“What we have seen so far is a shameful portrait: while the Lula government was talking about taking care of the people, the CGU audit showed that, from 2023, the number of fraudulent discounts exploded. In the first year of this government, it was $ 1.3 billion in illegal discounts, and in 2024, this breaker already exceeded $ 3 billion,” compares Deputy Fábio Costa (PP-AL).
“It is unacceptable that the government tries to relieve its responsibility by saying that it is ‘returning’ resources. It is not! It is using the sweaty money of the taxpayer to try to cover the breach caused by criminals. This is a double damage to the Brazilian people,” says Adriana Ventura.
“What we really need is to recover fully what has been diverted and punished, with all the rigor of the law, those responsible for this institutionalized fraud and aggravated by many who knew and did nothing,” she says.
