Former minister Aldo Rebelo states that he will go to court if his pre-candidacy for the Presidency of the Republic is blocked by the DC (Christian Democracy). As , the party launched the former minister of the (Supreme Federal Court), Joaquim Barbosa, as a pre-candidate, opening a split in the party.
Aldo was officially announced in February by the party as a candidate for the Planalto.
“Probably, if confirmed [a pré-candidatura de Joaquim Barbosa]will be taken to the convention and, in the worst case scenario, a judicialization process”, said the former minister to Sheet. “If there is a threat to my pre-candidacy, in this case, the issue will be taken to court. If not, it will move towards a peaceful and democratic dispute at the convention.”
For Rebelo, Barbosa’s pre-candidacy is nothing more than a trial balloon. The term is used to classify a communication strategy, usually by politicians, to pitch an idea to the public and observe the general reaction.
According to him, this assessment is based on the fact that the former magistrate has not yet commented on the matter.
Members of the DC national board say that the publicity strategy for Barbosa’s pre-candidacy was being drawn up behind the scenes and would be released at an opportune moment. They also claim that internal research would have shown Barbosa’s performance to be sufficiently good, unlike Aldo. The magistrate would have performed better, especially in Paraná and Rio de Janeiro.
“Minister Joaquim Barbosa is a man who cultivates anonymity, he is prudent. Everything in its time, nature does not make leaps. He is doing it his way,” said João Caldas, national president of the DC to Sheet. According to another party leader, the acronym was sought out by friends of the former STF minister, who had communicated his intention to run.
Joaquim Barbosa would have joined on April 2, in Rio de Janeiro.
The first black minister to preside over the Supreme Court, he took early retirement and left the court in 2014. Appointed by Lula, he gained notoriety for his tough stance towards the defendants as rapporteur of the mensalão, a case that condemned part of the former PT leadership, such as the former minister of the Civil House José Dirceu.
“Until now he has not spoken out, no one knows where he was affiliated. He never confirmed that he is a pre-candidate”, continued Aldo, who headed the Defense portfolios during the government of former president Dilma Rousseff (PT), in addition to Sports, Science and Technology and coordinated the Institutional Relations Secretariat during the second Lula government (PT).
“If confirmed, it will be taken to the party convention. The party in SP has already declared that it would not support this candidacy.”
The president of the São Paulo directory, former PT deputy Cândido Vaccarezza, declared to the Panel that Barbosa is “unsupportable” and that he would work against the former magistrate’s pre-candidacy.
Former federal deputy Paulo César Quartiero, who presides over the Roraima directory, also spoke out regarding the announcement, made by the national president of the DC. At an event in the state, with the presence of Caldas, he said that there is no possibility of making the exchange. “We would be exchanging a statesman for a swindler,” he said.
In the report, Aldo Rebelo states that his agenda is maintained. If the pre-candidacies of both remain, the disputes between Barbosa and Rebelo must be decided — if not in court — at the DC party convention, which will take place between July and August.
