Murders Influence Workers’ Party Primaries in São Paulo

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Members of the Workers’ Party (PT) leadership believe that the murders of two people linked to city councilor Senival Moura in the space of a week will influence the choice of the party’s candidate for the São Paulo mayoralty.

Senival is a member of the political group of former Deputy Jilmar Tatto, a favorite in the internal dispute within PT in São Paulo after former mayor Fernando Haddad rejected his candidacy last week. Tatto was Transport Secretary in two PT administrations in the city, while Senival has his electoral stronghold in the city’s suburbs.

The assassinations of Francisco Pereira de Brito, “Dr. Tito”, Secretary of Sports of Ferraz de Vasconcelos, a town in Greater São Paulo, and Adauto Soares Jorge, president of the ‘Transunião’ consortium, a transport company operating in the eastern part of the capital, have become ammunition for Tatto’s opponents.

On Wednesday, March 11th, leftists opposed to the appointment of the former deputy shared photos of Doctor Tico with Senival and other members of Tatto’s political group, among them federal deputy Nilto Tatto, brother of the pre-candidate.

Tico was assassinated at gunpoint with 20 shots the day before. On social media, Senival says the deputy has earmarked a congressional budget rider for works by Ferraz de Vasconcelos’ Sports Secretariat.

According to members of the PT leadership, the proximity of the victims to leftist leaders and widespread rumors over the circumstances of the murders, embarrass the party and may smear the process of selecting the candidate for mayor of Brazil’s largest city.

Jorge’s death last week had already drawn the leftists’ attention. The bus entrepreneur had been a friend of the city councilor for 30 years. After his death, with two shots to the head in a bakery in the Lageado neighborhood, Senival had requested an escort from the State Police to the city hall.

Following the second death, members of the city hall bench described the city councilor as “isolated,” and said he had refrained from talking about the crimes. On Wednesday, when the assembly was ready to vote on a transport bill – changes in the rules for App-based services, such as Uber and 99 – Senival remained in his office, speaking with allies.

According to people close to him, the city councilor is annoyed by the political use of the deaths. He intends to uphold his candidacy for re-election this year and will support Jilmar Tatto in the PT primaries.

According to Tatto, “Senival is a victim” of violence and the closeness to the city councilor does not hinder his candidacy. “It doesn’t. Whoever’s saying that is worried about losing the primaries in the first round.” Tatto said he has the support of six city councilors, five state deputies and three federal deputies.

In addition to Jilmar Tatto, city councilor Eduardo Suplicy, deputies Carlos Zarattini and Alexandre Padilha, former deputy Nabil Bondouki and militant Kika Silva are running in the primaries.

Up until last week leftist leaders still believed that Haddad would change his mind and accept the party’s invitation to dispute the mayoralty for the third time. In a conversation with PT Mayor Laércio Ribeiro, however, Haddad reiterated that he would not be a candidate.

He claims family and personal reasons for refusing the invitation, but leftist leaders say the real reason is the lack of support within PT’s national leadership. Haddad failed to place any allies in the party’s National Executive, which is now controlled by party president Gleisi Hoffmann, a former dissident.

When questioned, PT’s municipal, state and federal directories did not comment.

Scenario

Following Haddad’s withdrawal, other left-wing forces announced their pre-candidates to the São Paulo City Hall. PSOL is expected to have a board formed by the homeless movement leader Guilherme Boulos and the deputy and former mayor Luiza Erundina. Former governor Marcio França of PSB has announced that he will run in alliance with the PDT.

Source: O Estado de S. Paulo.