The year 2025 marks the two decades of the monthly, political scandal that occurred in the first PT government and to this day used by opponents to attack the party
The prosecution came from Roberto Jefferson, at the time, PTB deputy, when a report of corruption in the Post Office fell on his nominees and began to imply his participation
Back, Jefferson countered in an interview with sheet published on June 6, 2005, stating that the Lula government paid allowance to PL and PP deputies, then on the government base for its faithfulness
Described as a political support purchase scheme in Congress, the monthly reached the petista cream, imploded the party summit and forced Lula to recalculate the route to escape an impeachment process
The list of accused had 40 names. There were 11 petistas, 14 politicians from other parties, ten businessmen, three doleiros and two advertisers. Of the total, 25 people were convicted in 2012
Among the condemned petistas were José Dirceu, José Genoino, Delúbio Soares, Sílvio Pereira and João Paulo Cunha. All were arrested, except for Pereira, who made an agreement to provide community services in exchange for the suspension of the case
Genoino left the presidency of the PT in July of that year, after an advisor to then state deputy José Guimarães (CE), his brother, was arrested in the act at Congonhas airport with dollars in his cueca
One of the most critical petistas about the monthly, Tarso Genro took over the party’s presidency and ruled out the need for the PT, as an institution, to make any self -criticism for the scandal
Delúbio Soares, in charge of managing the petist coffers, publicly admitted the funding of party campaigns and allies through what he called “unconnected resources”.
I want to tell you that I feel betrayed. Betrayed by unacceptable practices of which I was never aware of. […] The PT has to apologize. The government, where it made a mistake, has to apologize
Lula, in a statement to the nation, August 2005
Investigations later pointed out that one of the scheme’s forms of financing was diverted money from Banco do Brasil. Eighteen deputies even had the cassation requested
In 2012, with the judgment of the scandal by the Supreme Court and the conviction of 24 people, the PT’s internal perception of the monthly changed. In the party, there was criticism of the performance of Minister Joaquim Barbosa, rapporteur of the process
For José Dirceu, the objective of the investigations was “to reach the government and President Lula and deconstruct the PT”. Already Tarso Genro says that, although the complaints were correct, the spectacularization of the scandal changed the course of investigations
The fact that the monthly is associated with the PT, and not to other parties, also contributed to the feeling of injustice
See Lula’s personal trajectory and politics
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