The President of the Chamber, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), finds himself in a moment of deep fragility after having failed to vote in plenary for the dismissal of Carla Zambelli (PL-SP) and seeing the final decision taken by the Minister of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) Alexandre de Moraes, who decreed the loss of the deputy’s mandate.
The magistrate annulled the decision of the Chamber to archive the representation against the Bolsonarista which took place in the early hours of Thursday (12/11). Zambelli was sentenced to 10 years in prison for invading the CNJ (National Council of Justice) system.
The inclusion of the impeachment on the agenda was communicated by Motta to the leaders on Tuesday (September 12), in a decision that surprised party leaders and without prior agreement. The imposition of agendas is not the profile of Motta, who was elected by promising a consensual and highly predictable agenda.
Cassation procedure in the Chamber
- Motta decided not to automatically declare the loss of mandate after the conviction and final judgment of the STF and referred Zambelli’s case to the Chamber CCJ;
- In committee, the rapporteur Diego García (Republicanos-PR) presented a report for the maintenance of the mandate of the deputy, since there would be no certainty regarding the commission of crimes, he declared that he did not have access to the archives and that there were signs of political persecution;
- On Wednesday (10/12), the rapporteur suffered a setback and saw his opinion rejected after a maneuver by União Brasil;
- The party leader, an ally of Motta, changed part of the bench the day before the vote on the final report;
- A new report was presented and approved by MP Claudio Cajado (PP-BA) which states that Zambelli finds herself in a “factual impossibility” to exercise her mandate while imprisoned in Italy;
- however, when it reached the plenary, the impeachment did not receive the necessary number of votes to be approved and it was ordered to be filed.
The rejection of the impeachment procedure for lack of quorum is considered a sign of Motta’s lack of mobilization. Shortly before, the plenary had reached the minimum necessary, after articulation of the government, to save the mandate of Glauber Braga (Psol-RJ). The psoloist was an enemy of the Centrão leadership, led by the former President of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL).
In addition to overturning the case, Alexandre de Moraes also determined that Motta must appoint his replacement, Adilson Barroso (PL-SP), within 48 hours of the court’s decision. For the magistrate, submitting the loss of mandate to the plenary assembly is a violation of the Constitution, since, having been condemned by a final and final judgment, the Council only has to decree the loss of mandate and not to rule on it.
“It is a void act, due to obvious unconstitutionality, demonstrating both a lack of respect for the principles of legality, morality and impersonality, as well as a blatant deviation from the objective,” Moraes states in the decision.
Friendly and enemy fire
The defeats in plenary have made Motta the target of criticism, not only from deputies openly opposed to his management of the Chamber, but also now from his predecessor and the one who chose him as candidate, Arthur Lira.
Reports collected by Metropolises showed that the former president complained about the current administration in messages sent in a WhatsApp group. “We have to reorganize the House. It’s a disaster,” said the Alagoas man.
The leader of the PT, Lindbergh Farias (RJ), in open break with the President of the Chamber, declared that the vote was a historic achievement and a great failure for Motta. “I don’t need to say that he is weakened. That’s a fact,” he told reporters.
“You don’t have to be a great political scientist to understand that it was very difficult to dismiss Zambelli in these circumstances. In the early hours of the morning, with a reduced quorum,” said the PT deputy.
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