Joaquim Barbosa responds to criticism of former Supreme Court president.
After being called "insecure" and having a difficult temperament, the Supreme Court minister makes far more serious accusations: he says that Cezar Peluso manipulated the results of trials.
247 While the press and the general public await one of the biggest trials in Brazilian history, the Mensalão scandal, some of those responsible for the process are fighting like cats and dogs these days. Last Wednesday, Minister Joaquim Barbosa was called "insecure" and "difficult to temper" by the former president of the Supreme Federal Court, Cezar Peluso. In an interview with the website Consultor Jurídico, Barbosa countered the criticism, saying that Peluso "thinks highly of himself," doesn't know how to lose, and tried to create obstacles for the CNJ's inspector general, Eliana Calmon. This Friday, the 20th, an interview published in the newspaper O Globo reveals serious accusations. Joaquim Barbosa accused Peluso of manipulating trial results. He also describes him as "ridiculous," "tacky," "country bumpkin," "corporate," "disloyal," "tyrannical," and "petty." Read the interview below:
'Peluso manipulated the results of trials,' says Joaquim Barbosa.
BRASILIA – Two days after being called insecure and possessing a “difficult temperament” by Minister Cezar Peluso, Supreme Court Justice Joaquim Barbosa responded harshly. In an interview with GLOBO, Barbosa called the now former president of the STF “ridiculous,” “tacky,” “country bumpkin,” “corporate,” “disloyal,” “tyrannical,” and “petty.” He accused Peluso of manipulating the results of judgments according to his interests and of practicing “supreme bullying” against him because of the health problems that led him to take leave for treatment. Barbosa is the rapporteur for the Mensalão case and will assume the presidency of the STF in seven months, succeeding Ayres Britto, who was sworn in this Thursday. For Barbosa, Peluso leaves no legacy to the STF: “People will remember him as a conservative and tyrannical president, who did not hesitate to violate the rules when it came to forcibly imposing his will.”
- O GLOBO: Upon leaving office, the former president of the Supreme Federal Court, Minister Cezar Peluso, gave an interview in which he mentioned you. At one point, he says that you will not refuse the presidency of the court under any circumstances. Is that true?
JOAQUIM BARBOSA: For me, assuming the presidency of the Supreme Court is an obligation. I have done everything possible and impossible to recover consistently and arrive well in December to assume the presidency of the Court. But, to be honest, I must say that the obstacles I have faced so far in the pursuit of this goal were, regrettably, almost all created by Mr… Cezar Peluso. It was he who, in 2010, when I took two months off for intensive treatment in São Paulo, questioned my medical leave and, ridiculously enough, raised the possibility of my being compulsorily retired. It was he who, in the second half of last year, after I underwent a very difficult surgery (on my hip), which left me unable to walk for several months, ignored the fact and insisted on putting my cases on the docket to force my appearance before the plenary, regardless of whether my condition allowed it or not.
Did you take any action?
BARBOSA: One day I took the descriptive reports of my health problems, signed by the doctors who were treating me at the time, Dr. Lin Tse and Dr. Roberto Dantas, both from São Paulo, and handed them over to Peluso, thus waiving my right to confidentiality regarding health matters. Since then, what I jokingly called "supreme bullying" with my advisors has been ceasing. The gossip about my health condition has disappeared from the newspapers.
What is your opinion about the interview given by Cezar Peluso?
BARBOSA: On the penultimate day of his disastrous presidency, Mr. Peluso, in a display of tacky, provincial "désinvolture," once again exposes embarrassing details of my health problem to journalists, even involving the name of a widely recognized neurosurgeon who, unfortunately, is not part of my medical team. My God! Is this the behavior of a president of the Supreme Federal Court?
Minister Peluso said in the interview that the court has become more peaceful under his leadership. Do you agree with that assessment?
BARBOSA: Peluso is mistaken. He did not appease the court. On the contrary, he set the entire Judiciary ablaze with his corporatist obsession.
In your opinion, what legacy does Minister Peluso leave for the Supreme Federal Court?
BARBOSA: No positive legacy. People will remember him as a conservative, imperial, tyrannical president of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) who did not hesitate to violate the rules when it came to forcibly imposing his will. I'll give examples: Peluso repeatedly manipulated or attempted to manipulate the results of judgments, creating false procedural issues simply to cause turmoil and avoid proclaiming a result contrary to his thinking. Remember the impasse in the first Clean Slate Law trials, which led the court to hours of pointless discussions; he did not hesitate to vote twice in the same case, which is absolutely unconstitutional, illegal, and unacceptable (the minister refers to the judgment that freed Jader Barbalho from the Clean Slate Law and guaranteed his return to the Senate, in which Peluso's double vote, guaranteed in the STF's Internal Regulations, was decisive. Joaquim disagrees with this instrument); He committed the barbarity and disloyalty of, during a short trip I made to the United States for a medical consultation, "invading" my domain (I was the rapporteur for the case), stealing the file from me so he could easily give in to pressure…