The São Paulo Court suspended the election of the FPF (São Paulo Football Federation), scheduled for this Wednesday (25), after questions about the legality of the statutory reform that allowed the reappointment of the current president, Reinaldo Carneiro Bastos.
The decision was made by judge Débora Vanessa Caús Brandão, from the São Paulo Court of Justice, who granted partial effect to an appeal by the Mauaense Football League, which organizes lowland football in Mauá (Greater São Paulo), and ordered the suspension of the Elective Ordinary General Assembly and related acts. When contacted, the FPF claims to have become aware of the decision and will appeal, “to ensure that the will of all regular clubs and leagues that have the right to vote is respected.”
The judge considered that there is a “concrete institutional risk” if the election takes place under a statute whose validity is contested. According to her, holding the election could compromise the effectiveness of future arbitration on the subject and even “generate sanctions from the institutions to which [a entidade] is subordinate.”
The league that filed the lawsuit alleges that the change in statute — which increased the re-election limit — would not have been effectively deliberated at the meeting, despite appearing in minutes recorded later. He also points out flaws in the call process and accuses the entity of having hidden the changes for months.
In the decision, the judge states that there is sufficient evidence to temporarily suspend the electoral process until the merits are analyzed by an arbitration court, a forum established between the parties to resolve the conflict.
She also highlighted that the suspension is reversible and does not prevent the election from being held in the future. “The temporary suspension of the conclave does not prevent the regular exercise of associative suffrage, it only shifts the time frame of the election,” he wrote. .
The election was at an advanced stage, with a single registered ticket —headed by the current president— and supported by the 64 teams present in the first four divisions of São Paulo. This prevented any opposition candidacy.
The pre-candidate who was running against Reinaldo, former FPF vice-president Wilson Marqueti Jr., had withdrawn, claiming that the process was unfair. The Federation states that the entity’s electoral process is conducted with transparency and legal rigor.
Reinaldo is also the target of an investigation initiated by the Public Ministry of São Paulo (MP-SP) and conducted by the police to investigate suspicions of fraudulent management, ideological falsehood and possible money laundering. He denies wrongdoing and says he is the target of “empty and slanderous denunciation”.
com DIEGO ALEJANDRO, JULLIA GOUVEIA and KARINA MATIAS
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