Motta spoke with PL leaders and parliamentarian’s family in search of a way out, his allies say

The ministers of the Federal Court (STF) were not informed of the decision reported this Sunday. Adilson Barroso (PL-SP) will replace the parliamentarian imprisoned in Italy. According to the leader of the PL in the House, MP Sóstenes Cavalcante (PL-RJ), the resignation occurred for a “strategic” issue.

Motta had asked the legal service of the Chamber to analyze the decision by which Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), annulled the decision of the plenary assembly of the Chamber, which preserved the mandate of the parliamentarian. In his decision, Moraes had ordered the dismissal, as the Court had previously ordered. On Friday, the order was unanimously approved by the STF’s first panel.

— It was a strategic resignation to help defend it in Italy. Zambelli was required to resign before Motta approved the impeachment, with the House acquitting him. Moraes thinks he is in charge, but we have our strategies — said Sóstenes.

Moraes overturned the House decision

According to Moraes, the deliberation of the Chamber of Deputies rejecting the loss of the deputy mandate “occurred in flagrant violation” of the Constitution. “This 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,” said the Minister of the Supreme Court.

The judge concluded by affirming that the Federal Constitution gives the judiciary the power to determine the loss of the parliamentary mandate in the event of a criminal conviction that becomes final and without appeal. In these cases, the judge explained, it is up to the Council of the Chamber to simply declare the loss of the mandate, through a related administrative act, as provided for in the Constitution.

The minister, who is rapporteur of the process which resulted in the conviction of the deputy, also underlined in his decision that the vote of the Chamber contradicted a series of judgments of the STF on the subject, emphasizing that the Court, since the judgment of Criminal Action 470 (the “mensalão”), in 2012, has consolidated the idea according to which parliamentarians found guilty of criminal offenses automatically lose their mandate.

As O GLOBO showed, STF ministers stated that they considered the decision that maintained Zambelli’s mandate to be “unacceptable” and that they saw it as an attempt to demoralize the Court. Magistrates interviewed privately by GLOBO have already declared that new measures would be adopted by the court.

Constitutional law professor Gustavo Sampaio, from the Fluminense Federal University (UFF), believes that the STF should consider Zambelli’s resignation as ineffective and that the MP could lose his political rights following Moraes’ decision. Sampaio emphasizes that the Court must take into account the agreement that has been consolidated over the years and which has been in force since the impeachment of former President Fernando Collor in 1992.

— In this case, given that the deputy resigns after a court decision establishing that within 48 hours the Board of Directors of the Chamber must decide whether she loses her mandate, the STF considers Zambelli’s resignation as ineffective. With the loss of her functions, the criminal conviction becoming final, the political rights of the deputy are suspended and she can no longer run for office.

Zambelli was convicted in May this year by the STF for invading the systems of the National Council of Justice (CNJ). The Ministers of the First Panel understood that she and the hacker Walter Delgatti had committed the crimes of hacking a computer device and ideological lying.

The Attorney General’s Office (PGR) accused Zambelli and Delgatti of coordinating attacks against CNJ systems with the aim of discrediting justice and inciting antidemocratic acts.