The government began to fire this Friday (10) political appointees of the MP (provisional measure) of the tax increase, in a first action to retaliate against members of the government base that of the Palácio do Planalto.
Five regional superintendents of ministries linked to and were dismissed. A member of Planalto says that allies were warned that this vote was decisive, and that those who took a position against the provisional measure would choose to leave the government.
The first consequences appeared in the Official Gazette of the Union, with the dismissal of the superintendents of Pará, Paraná, Minas Gerais and Maranhão. At the Ministry of Transport, the superintendent of Dnit (National Department of Transport Infrastructure) in Roraima lost her position.
The dismissals caused dissatisfaction mainly in the PSD, according to deputies heard by the Sheet. A leader of the party classified the government’s action as unintelligent and meaningless, as the party was the second party with the greatest support for the MP, behind only .
The PSD voted against the provisional measure, in an action coordinated by the party president, . MDB already declared a vote in favor. Both benches cracked, however. In the PSD, there were 20 votes in favor of the government and 18 against. In the MDB, 16 votes for the government and 14 against.
According to parliamentarians, the dismissals also affected state-owned companies, such as Correios and , with layoffs in advisory and regional administration positions. The departure of commissioned employees from these companies is not published in the Official Gazette.
The provisional measure was one of the Lula government’s main bets to keep revenue growing in 2026 and avoid the need to cut expenses and investments in the election year. It had a predicted impact of R$20 billion on the Budget, and now the Executive will have to find other sources of revenue or reduce its spending.
The defeat, by 251 votes to 193, led the government to retaliate against allies who were unfaithful. Parties that claim to be in opposition and held positions were also affected, such as nominees from and at Caixa.
An ally of the vice-president of the Chamber, (PL-RJ), Rodrigo de Lemos Lopes was removed from the vice-presidency of sustainability and digital citizenship, as announced by the bank in a statement to the market this Friday. In his place, Jean Rodrigues Benevides, executive director of sustainability and digital citizenship, will take over on an interim basis.
José Trabulo Junior, consultant to the bank’s president, since September 25, 2024, was also removed from his position. He is an ally of the PP president, , . A native of Piauí, Trabulo was also a member of the Supervisory Board of Caixa Corretora, one of the bank’s subsidiaries, and was director of Conab (Companhia Nacional de Abastecimento) in the Bolsonaro government.
Other targets, according to government members, should be people nominated by politicians from União Brasil and PP. The two government acronyms are working to strengthen an opposing candidacy to that of President Lula (PT) in 2026.
On Wednesday (8), the day of voting on the provisional measure, PP and União Brasil punished (União Brasil) and (PP) for the decision to remain in the Ministries of Tourism and Sports. They were removed from management positions, and Sabino will face expulsion from the party.
Despite this movement, politicians from União Brasil and PP maintain control of state-owned companies such as , (Companhia de Desenvolvimento dos Vales do São Francisco and Parnaíba), Telebras and Correios directorates, in addition to several appointments in .
The Lula government’s strategy is to count on part of the center in its 2026 campaign, just as happened four years ago. The dismissal of the infidels, according to government officials, is the first step towards this cleanliness and to strengthen those who will actually be on the PT’s side in the presidential election.
