Petrobras Scandal: Lula Tells Allies that He Is a Political Target of Lava Jato

11/25/2015 - 09h32

The former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday that the arrest of his friend José Carlos Bumlai proves that he is a political target of those responsible for Operation Lava Jato. "He knows what they're trying to achieve," said Paulo Okamotto, president of the Instituto Lula.

	Luis Eduardo Noriega/Efe
	According to Lula's allies, "he knows that they want to hurt him politically."

Okamotto says, "It is undeniable that Bumlai was close to the ex-president. He attended parties and made visits to the institute. But I don't know if he was a friend of Lula's exactly. What is a friend, in your opinion?" he argued. He added that Lula sees the arrest not as "the fence closing around him", but rather as "an irritation."

According to Lula's allies, the ex-president complains that management of the investigation is "ostentatious" and "he knows that they want to hurt him politically." He has also criticized the judge Sergio Moro, who is responsible for the case.

Another two allies used the expressed "annoyed" to describe Lula's mood. Lula feels that the "damage" to his reputation will be irreversible, even if the investigations reach their conclusion without unearthing any proof of his involvement in the corruption scheme at Petrobras.

"It's like the police operations in Rio de Janeiro. They victimize 100 people to get one criminal. Is this the correct method?" argues Okamotto.

According to his allies, Lula has complained repeatedly about Bumlai's arrest, saying, "If he did something, it wasn't with my approval."

Although Lula recognizes that Bumlai may have exploited his relationship with him for personal gain, he complained about the way the arrest was made, with widespread exposure in the press.

Translated by TOM GATEHOUSE

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