Measure responds to a popular action proposed by Belo Horizonte councilor, Pedro Rousseff (PT), and is valid for the time the former representative is detained
The Federal Court in determined the suspension of the lifetime benefits and rights that the former president receives for having held the Presidency of the Republic, while he serves his sentence in a closed regime. The measure responds to a popular action proposed by Belo Horizonte councilor, Pedro Rousseff (PT). The author maintains that, although Bolsonaro is serving his sentence in a closed regime, the Union continues to maintain the structure funded with public resources provided for by a standard that guarantees security and support for former presidents.
In the first half of 2025 alone, these expenses totaled R$521,073.00 and since 2023, the amount has exceeded R$4 million. According to a survey using data from the Civil House’s Open Data Portal, the former president’s cost was R$994,592.11 until November this year. According to the action, Bolsonaro also has four employees for security and support, two official vehicles with drivers and two advisors, as well as expenses for tickets, daily allowances, fuel and maintenance. The preliminary decision ordered the Union to block the provision of these services within 48 hours.
According to the decree of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) of 2008, any person who has held the position of President of the Republic is entitled to four employees for security and personal support activities, two personal advisors, two vehicles and two drivers.
However, in the decision, the judge states that the design of the law that grants these benefits presupposes the former president “in civil life, exposed to risks specific to his past condition and involved in public, political or institutional activities”, which is not the case in the case of someone in a closed regime. For the magistrate, Bolsonaro’s security, while in prison, must be guaranteed by the prison system and the rules of criminal execution, not by a parallel structure linked to the Institutional Security Office (GSI).
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
