Defeated Presidential Candidate Haddad Says Lula Should be Released in September

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – “It is increasingly clear to the judiciary that a number of injustices have been committed against President Lula. Many decisions are being reversed and we hope that the decision that convicted Lula will be re-examined because he did not have ample rights of defense and was convicted in the absence of evidence.”

Defeated presidential candidate Fernando Haddad issued the speech on Saturday, August 31st, during an event organized by ‘Lula Livre’ (“Free Lula”) committees in Recife, capital of Pernambuco. The action, held in the neighborhood of Casa Amarela, gathered some 5,000 people.

He further criticized prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, coordinator of the Lava Jato task force, who had his political partisanship uncovered through the disclosure of messages exchanged between the members of the operation, through The Intercept website.

“Deltan says something different each day. One day he says the messages are not his, when it’s proven that they are, then he says that there is nothing ‘relevant’ in them, and when they say that yes, there is, he says that the messages have been taken out of context.”

“Were Deltan interested in the truth, he would deliver his cell phone (to the authorities), as did (Haddad’s running mate) Manuela D’Ávila,” he said.

In his speech, Haddad also criticized the environmental policy of the Bolsonaro government and denounced the increase in forest fires in the Amazon, which have led many international companies to boycott Brazilian products.