The president of the Senate, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), stated this Wednesday that the House’s legal team will provide support to parliamentarians who face legal challenges while exercising their mandate. The statement comes after minister Gilmar Mendes called the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) to request the investigation of senator Alessandro Vieira for abuse of authority.
When asked about the case, Alcolumbre said that the Senate will act to defend its institutional prerogatives.
— The Federal Senate’s advocacy will provide full and complete support to any senator who, given their prerogatives, needs this institutional support — he stated.
This Wednesday, Gilmar made a request for an investigation against Vieira. In the final report presented to the CPI on Crime, the senator proposed the indictment of Gilmar himself, in addition to ministers Alexandre de Moraes and Dias Toffoli, and the Attorney General of the Republic, Paulo Gonet, for alleged crimes of responsibility in the context of the investigations into the Banco Master case.
The document also maintains that decisions by the Federal Supreme Court throughout the work of the CPI limited measures approved by the collegiate, such as breaches of confidentiality and summonses, and contributed to an environment of “intense judicialization” which, according to the rapporteur, compromised the progress of the investigations.
The proposal, however, was rejected by the CPI by 6 votes to 4, after changes in the composition of the board.
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In the letter sent to the PGR, Gilmar stated that there was a “misappropriation of purpose” in the conduct of the work and maintained that the rapporteur went beyond the powers of a parliamentary committee by proposing indictments without support in concrete elements. The minister also argued that the initiative advanced the competences of the Judiciary and could fall under the Abuse of Authority Law.
In a statement, Vieira stated that he will respond to the representation “with absolute tranquility and within the due technical rigor”. According to him, “it is crystal clear that a senator, when expressing his legal assessment of concrete facts in a vote given within the scope of a CPI, does not commit abuse of authority and is protected by parliamentary immunity”. The senator added that “threats and attempts at embarrassment will not change the course of history.”
In a speech in the Senate plenary, shortly before the formalization of the investigation request, Vieira had reacted to the criticism and stated that he exercised his prerogative by presenting the vote as rapporteur. He classified the possibility of being held responsible for his parliamentary demonstration as “extreme absurdity”.
— I am being threatened and criminalized for one vote — he said, citing statements by Gilmar Mendes and Dias Toffoli.
The senator also made a direct appeal to Alcolumbre and questioned what the Senate’s institutional position will be in light of the episode.
— Does the Senate have to stoop to the point of tolerating this type of threat? — he stated.
