The processing process in the Senate of the indication of Jorge Messias to the STF (Supreme Federal Court) advanced this Wednesday (15) with the reading the curriculum report of the Attorney General of the Union at the CCJ (Constitution and Justice Commission). He was appointed to the post by Lula (PT) in November.
The next stage is the Messias hearing by the CCJ and the vote in the commission, followed by the deliberation in the plenary — scheduled for April 28th.
The senators decided to bring forward this process by one day, which was scheduled for April 29th, because of the May 1st holiday, which, according to them, could empty the House from Wednesday (29th).
Since last week, Messias resumed contact with the senators and has visited offices to garner support. Since the appointment, in November, the AGU has met with more than 70 senators and intends to talk to the entire House by the date of the hearing. However, a meeting with the president of the Senate has not yet taken place, David Alcolumbre (Unity Brazil-AP).
To become a minister of the STF, Messias must be approved by at least 41 out of 81 senators in a secret vote. Allies of the AGU claim that he has the support of around 48 senators. Opposition senators say he does not have the necessary votes and will be rejected.
As shown by Sheetthe report concerning Messiahmade by senator Weverton Rocha (PDT-MA), was favorable and complimentary.
Weverton’s seven-page report provides details about Messias’ CV, who was a Central Bank attorney, Finance attorney, consultant in ministries, and part of the government’s Civil House. Dilma Rousseff (PT) and special advisor in the Senate, before taking over as head of the AGU in the Lula 3 government.
The rapporteur highlights medals and honors of Messiah, who is evangelical, delivered to him by evangelicals and the military, which may please the right-wing bench in the Senate. Among them is the Diploma of the Order of Christian Merit Medal of the Evangelical Parliamentary Front and the Orders of Naval and Aeronautical Merit.
Weverton says that, as the Union’s attorney general, Messias had a conciliatory profile and dialogue with different sectors. “Under his leadership, the AGU positioned conciliation as a State policy, prioritizing legal security through judicial and extrajudicial agreements”, says the report.
At this Thursday’s CCJ session, the reports regarding Messias and the nominations of Margareth Costa for the TST (Superior Labor Court) and Tarcijany Linhares Aguiar Machado for the position of federal general public defender were read. They also had hearings scheduled for the 28th.
The CCJ also approved the appointment of five names to the CNJ (National Council of Justice) and two names to the CNMP (National Council of the Public Ministry). The seven hearings were carried out jointly, and the nominations now go to the plenary for voting.
Ilan Presser, Andréa Cunha Esmeraldo, Kátia Magalhães Arruda, Paulo Regis Machado Botelho and Noemia Aparecida Garcia Porto were nominated for the CNJ. As for the CNMP, the names are Marcio Barra Lima and Carl Olav Smith.
The message that formalizes the appointment of Messiah was sent to the Senate by President Lula on the 31st, but it had been stopped since then, amid the frayed relationship between Alcolumbre and the PT member. The name announcement had been made more than four months agoon November 20th.
At that moment, the government faced a crisis with Alcolumbre, who resisted the name of Messias. The Senate president’s preference was for the name of the senator Rodrigo Pacheco (PSB-MG).
With Alcolumbre working against Messiah and threatening to hold the vote without the nominee having enough votes, Lula decided to delay sending the official statement and buy more time for political articulations in favor of his ally.
Supporters of the attorney general in Congress claim that his The situation is better now than in Novembereven though the edges between Lula and Alcolumbre have not been completely trimmed.
As shown by Sheetthe articulation around the attempt to cool down the Senate president’s resistance to Messias’ nomination includes ministers from the court itself, including the two appointed by Jair Bolsonaro (PL): André Mendonça and Kassio Nunes Marques.
