Former Minister of Finance and pre-candidate for the Government of , (PT) stated this Thursday (18), in an interview with Kritike Podcast, that “the law has to be applied regardless of fans”, when commenting on the one that targeted (-BA), leader of the government in the Senate.
“I root for justice to be done,” said Haddad. “I will regret if a person close to me made a mistake, because it is a person I knew and everything, but I cannot wish, even for the good of society, that the law is not applied.”
The statement was given on the same day as the new phase of Operation Compliance Zero, which investigates suspicions related to . The operation was authorized by the minister of the (Federal Supreme Court).
The Federal Police found US$55,000 and 33,000 euros, around R$471,000, at addresses linked to Wagner. According to the senator’s office, the amount is the result of legal daily allowances, declared and not used on official international missions.
In a statement, Wagner stated that he is not a defendant and was not denounced or accused in any process related to the facts investigated. The senator also said that he remains at the disposal of the authorities to provide clarifications.
Haddad stated that political or personal proximity should not impede the investigation of suspicions or the application of the law.
“If an opponent of mine didn’t make a mistake, he has to have his defense rights guaranteed and everything else. And, if an ally of mine made a mistake and it’s been proven, patience. The country has to work like this,” he stated.
The PT pre-candidate for the São Paulo government also said that Wagner had already provided clarifications and that it will be up to the authorities to evaluate the explanations presented.
In the interview, Haddad praised the president (PT) and stated that, in his government, “institutions work”. He compared the PT member’s stance to that of the former president (PL), whom he accused of.
“What did Lula say? If my son has explanations to give, he will. I’m not going to change the police chief, I’m not going to change the superintendent, I’m not going to change the minister, I’m not going to change Coaf,” said Haddad, in reference to Jair Bolsonaro.
The PF investigation into Wagner investigates suspicions that the senator received payments linked to Banco Master, from , through his stepson’s wife’s company, in addition to an apartment in Salvador valued at R$2.5 million.
The PF identified a payment of R$3.5 million from a company linked to businessman Augusto Lima to Wagner’s “family nucleus”. According to Mendonça’s decision, the value is one of the signs of proximity between the parliamentarian and the businessman.
Lima’s defense stated that the facts will be clarified and that he always acted within the law.
Wagner, 75, is a former governor of Bahia, was a minister in the Lula and Dilma Rousseff (PT) governments and is one of the president’s closest allies. In 2018, he had already been the target of Operation Red Card, which investigated suspicions linked to transfers from contractors in the construction and management of , in Salvador.
In the interview, Haddad cited this episode and said that Wagner stated at the time that he “did nothing wrong”. The operation was annulled in 2019 by the TRF-1 (Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region), which understood that the investigation was not within the jurisdiction of the Federal Court because the resources for the renovation of the stadium came from the state of Bahia, and not from the Union.
