The right rejects embarking on an attempt to reform the Judiciary as raised by the minister of the (Supreme Federal Court). Despite being supporters of change, Bolsonarists believe that the magistrate and the PT are using the agenda at this time to distance the Lula government. The opposition expects to have a majority in Congress from 2027, and therefore wants to postpone the discussion until next year.
In public, the right has stated that it rejects a reform of the Judiciary at this time because it does not believe in a process led by the STF itself and taken over by the PT. “We will not support it. Ministers do not respect the Constitution, why would they respect this code of conduct?”, he told Sheet the leader of the opposition in the Chamber, .
The leader of the PL in the House, , criticized several points of Dino’s proposal. He argued that the initiative, supported by part of President Lula’s base, would be unlikely to materialize this year. The parliamentarian says that the electoral recess is approaching and that the Chamber already has the end of the 6×1 scale, an important matter, to consider.
Thus, the calculation is that supporting Dino’s proposal would only strengthen the government in its speech and could help a reform along the lines defended by the government base in convergence with the minister. Bolsonaristas want a radical change, to contain the powers of the STF and facilitate the impeachment of ministers.
The reform proposal defended by Dino. Some aim to change technical issues such as the delay in analyzing cases, while others enter into thorny discussions such as the end of compulsory retirement and the classification of certain crimes when committed by judges and other members of the Judiciary.
For Sóstenes, Dino’s proposal is vague and imprecise when it comes to technical issues and Electoral Justice. Even at points of convergence, such as the establishment of a code of conduct with the toughening of penalties for corrupt judges, there is distrust.
“The STF itself is against a Code of Ethics in the STF, as suggested by Minister Fachin”, said Sóstenes to Sheet.
The leader of the opposition in the Senate, Rogério Marinho (PL-RN), said on social media that a change is “necessary”, but stated that the “convergence between Minister Flávio Dino’s article and the defense of the Judiciary reform by the PT raises legitimate doubts”.
Sóstenes stated that the reform should include points such as a ten-year mandate for ministers of the STF, STJ (Superior Court of Justice), TSE (Superior Electoral Court) and the TCU (Federal Audit Court). The rule would also apply to judges of the Courts of Justice, Federal Regional Courts and Regional Electoral Courts.
The PL leader highlighted that the group argues that the appointment of STF ministers should not be the exclusive responsibility of the President of the Republic, but shared with the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
To approve a reform along these lines, Bolsonarists believe, it would be necessary to guarantee a majority in the Senate and expand the base in the Chamber. The PL believes that the right will obtain more than half of the seats in both Houses, thus enabling change via the PEC (Proposed Amendment to the Constitution). This mechanism does not depend on the approval of the President of the Republic. In other words, it could be instituted even in the event of Flávio Bolsonaro’s defeat.
In the PT, Dino’s proposal resonates. The party has defended judicial reform after the Master fraud scandal revealed relationships between STF ministers and their families with the bank. In April, the party’s president, Edinho Silva, stated: “Fulanizing is very easy. People are fallible. The important thing is to have strong institutions.” He argued that “we should be debating reform of the Judiciary so that failures stop happening.”
The matter was discussed at the PT congress, which began this week and continues until Sunday (26). The party defended, in a manifesto, a reform of the Judiciary and spoke of the creation of self-correction mechanisms.
The right and the center believe that Lula has been exhausted by the Master’s crisis because of the association between the government and the STF, made by the population. So far, the scandal has mainly affected ministers, due to his wife’s contract with the bank; , due to the relationship with a fund used by banker Daniel Vorcaro; and, for the million-dollar consultancy provided by his son to the institution.
In this way, the right wants to prevent the PT and Dino from leading the Judiciary reform process, as it assesses that Lula has been bleeding due to the crisis and could lose even more before the election.
