Gurgel scoffs: investigation is "laughable"
Upon receiving the news that he will be investigated by the Federal Court of Accounts, following a decision by the Federal Senate that accepted a request from former president Fernando Collor, the Attorney General described the representation as "laughable"; he claims that the bidding process for the purchase of 1,2 iPads was not rigged because only Apple produces the equipment; in other words, according to Roberto Gurgel, tablets from other brands, such as Samsung or Motorola, did not meet the prosecutors' needs; to 247, Collor reacted succinctly: "The floor is yours, TCU."
247 - The controversial purchase of 1,2 tablets by the Attorney General's Office, at the behest of Roberto Gurgel, is far from over. This Thursday, the Federal Senate approved a request for the Federal Court of Accounts to investigate the acquisition of the iPads. According to Senator Fernando Collor (PTB/AL), who authored the request, the bidding process was rigged in favor of Apple. Upon learning that he will be investigated, Gurgel called the representation "laughable" and said that the purchase was not rigged because only the company founded by Steve Jobs produces iPads – even though tablets from other well-known brands, such as Samsung and Motorola, exist. Contacted by 247, Collor reacted succinctly: "The floor is yours, TCU."
Read the news report from Agência Brasil below:
Deborah Zampier
Reporter from Agência Brasil
Brasilia – The Attorney General of the Republic, Roberto Gurgel, received with surprise the news that will be investigated by the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU)He was informed of the Senate's decision shortly after the Supreme Federal Court (STF) session. "It's laughable, not the Senate's decision itself, but the reason for the request," he said.
The TCU (Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts) will investigate the purchase of 1.200 tablets The Attorney General's Office (PGR) is investigating whether there was bid rigging. According to the prosecutor, there was no bid rigging, but rather a specific bidding process for a particular brand (iPad, from Apple) that met the agency's needs.
According to Gurgel, the purchase of a specific product has already been made by several public bodies, such as the Ministry of Mines and Energy, in a procedure approved by the TCU (Federal Court of Accounts). He considers the TCU's oversight legitimate. "All doors of the Public Prosecutor's Office will be open to the TCU, as they always have been and always will be, so that all verifications can be carried out."
Gurgel declined to comment on whether the Senate's decision was politically motivated, attributing the information to news reports. When asked if he agreed with that assessment, he simply replied that "it's one of the possibilities."