President-elect Lula (PT) confirmed this Friday (9) the name of five ministers who will compose his government starting in January, kickstarting the definition of strategic names from the top tier.
The announcement was made to the press at the CCBB (Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil), headquarters of the transitional cabinet, in Brasília, with messages from Lula to military sectors and to the Federal Police.
Senator-elect Flávio Dino (PSB) was chosen for the Ministry of Justice and Public Security; the governor of Bahia, Rui Costa (PT), as Chief of Staff; diplomat Mauro Vieira for Foreign minister (Itamaraty); the former president of the TCU (Federal Court of Accounts) José Múcio Monteiro for Defense; and former Minister Fernando Haddad (PT) for Finance.
The two last names were the most expected, in areas in which Lula suffered the most pressure for definitions.
In the Economy, there is an expectation that, with the appointment of the new Minister, the negotiations regarding the Transition PEC (Proposed Amendment to the Constitution) will be facilitated.
The name of the new Minister of Defense, on the other hand, was expected to try to pacify the relationship between the PT ( Workers' party) government and the Armed Forces, after four years of crisis and politicization in the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
After the announcement, Lula said that the Armed Forces were not made to do politics; and Múcio spoke of appeasement, harmony, "the most traditional as possible" change of command, and "nobody's invention".
The president-elect stated that the Armed Forces have an important and constitutional role. "The Forces were not made to do politics. People in active duty have a noble mission, which is to take care of the security of 215 million Brazilians, of our borders, and of taking care, I would say, of our sovereignty."
The future Minister of Defense said that next week he will start looking for the names of the new commanders of the Army, Navy, and Air Force and that he will talk to the current heads of each Force.
As Folha reported, the future commanders will be General Julio Cesar de Arruda, in the Army; Admiral Marcos Sampaio Olsen, in the Navy; and Brigadier Marcelo Kanitz Damasceno (Air Force).
Those chosen names prioritize the criterion of seniority, in an attempt to disarm the resistance and eventual insubordination of the military.
Múcio is seen with good eyes both by Bolsonarists and by members of Lula's Forces and allies. He also stated that he still frequently talks with President Bolsonaro. "When he lost the elections, I went to greet him. There is not the slightest problem. In a democracy, we have to respect the opponents, it doesn't have to be an enemy. It can be an opponent. They know who I voted for."
Flávio Dino announced Federal Police chief Andrei Passos Rodrigues as the incoming Director General of the Federal Police. Lula stated that it will be necessary to fix the Federal Police and that he does not want "policemen putting on a show during investigations".
Andrei is a Federal Police Chief and held the position of coordinator of Lula's security team during the electoral campaign, a position in which he will remain until the inauguration.
"Flávio Dino has the mission of first fixing up the Ministry of Justice and fixing up the dynamics of the Federal Police," said Lula. "We don't want the police to be putting on a show during investigations before doing the actual investigation", he added.
Of the ministers announced this Friday, none are women or black. Lula said that Dino is "at least brown". Despite Gleisi Hoffmann, president of the PT, being on the president-elect’s side, she has already stated that she will not be taking over any cabinet. Lula tried to make up for the lack of diversity by promising names of "women, men, blacks, Indigenous people" in the next announcements.
Translated by Cassy Dias