An audit carried out by the (Comptroller General of the Union) concluded that around 60% of the Dnocs (National Department of Works against Drought) contracts, from 2021 and 2023, had nothing to do with the period covering the Bolsonaro and Lula governments.
According to the Comptroller’s Office, they were spent on road paving works and the acquisition of agricultural machinery, such as backhoes, motor graders and plow harrows — without having anything to do with the agency.
According to the audit, these facts showed that Dnocs does not prioritize actions aimed at combating water scarcity in the semi-arid region, which could result in the inefficiency of its actions. The body is linked to MIDR (Ministry of Integration and Regional Development).
A and the CGU are investigating a scheme to divert parliamentary amendments destined for Dnocs that would have generated R$1.4 billion in fraudulent contracts and overpriced works.
The investigation has among its main targets and has already removed municipal employees from Bahia from their positions.
In March, the PF also carried out an operation to investigate the diversion of agricultural machinery and implements from Dnocs in Bahia. The investigation looked at equipment donations made between 2019 and 2021, during the management.
In its audit, the CGU stated that the authority did not demonstrate that its actions were targeted at the municipalities and regions most vulnerable to droughts, based on technical parameters.
In 2024, the country has suffered since the beginning of the current historical series, in 1950, according to data from Cemaden (National Center for Monitoring and Alerts of Natural Disasters).
The problem is 58% of the national territory.
According to legislation, the department is responsible for wells, pipelines and cisterns with the aim of increasing water security.
For the CGU, in addition to violating the Constitution, by exceeding the powers assigned to it, Dnocs also compromises its ability to face water scarcity by using resources incorrectly.
Dnocs responded to the Controllership that the actions reach the authority in a pre-established manner, forwarded by MIDR and parliamentary amendments.
He also informed that he is only responsible for execution, without any participation in the planning of these actions.
On the other hand, he stated that the contracts are compatible with his skills, as they support agricultural production and its flow and facilitate the distribution of water to rural communities, through water trucks.
The Controller’s Office, however, said that Dnocs did not present any study that indicated the locations where access for water tankers would be hampered by poor conditions of local roads so that they could be prioritized in paving actions.
He also pointed out that Dnocs does not know in advance which municipalities will have paved roads, since they are only indicated later by the parliamentarian who sends resources via amendment, “the exclusive source of resources for these contracts”.
He also stated that the agricultural machinery was acquired by the agency without provision in the MIDR manuals.
For the CGU, Dnocs should declare itself technically prevented from carrying out the execution of Parliament’s demands, due to the fact that the contracted objects have no thematic relevance to the body’s purpose.
The Controller’s Office also warned that these contracts expose the department to risks, such as overpricing for services, as there are not enough employees with technical expertise to conduct and supervise the contracts.
“This distortion of Dnocs’ performance is even more serious when considering the progressive emptying of its staff, without the recurring demands for public tenders having been met by the MIDR”, said the Controller’s Office.
The CGU also recommended to the body the creation of standards that establish objective technical criteria for the prioritization and selection of water infrastructure works.
Dnocs did not comment on the Comptroller’s conclusions in the body’s report, according to the CGU in the document.
“Due to the lack of a response, the CGU communicated the case to the Internal Control department of the Ministry of Regional Integration, which resulted in a new request for an extension of time from the authority. However, this expired without any response from Dnocs, even though eighty days had already passed since the preliminary report was sent”, he said.
When contacted for the report, the Dnocs press office did not respond about the report. MIDR said that companies and linked authorities, such as Dnocs, have the autonomy to commit resources related to the actions they carry out.
