In a statement, Lula denies having suggested Meirelles to Dilma.
Amid rumors that former President Lula had suggested the return of Henrique Meirelles to head the economic area, the Planalto Palace reinforces its confidence in the Finance Minister, Guido Mantega, guaranteeing that such a proposal was never heard by President Dilma Rousseff; "Finance Minister Guido Mantega has rendered great services in leading the country's economy and is known for his competence and seriousness in managing the ministry," said Lula, in a statement released by his Institute.
247 - A meeting between former Central Bank president Henrique Meirelles and former president Lula, which took place at the Lula Institute last week, fueled rumors about Meirelles' possible return to the government, at a time when the real is suffering a sharp devaluation against the dollar and economists are advocating for a "confidence shock." Moments ago, President Dilma Rousseff definitively ruled out the possibility of having Meirelles back on her team and reinforced her confidence in Minister Mantega. This afternoon, a statement was released by the Lula Institute, in which he denies having made any proposal for changes in the economic area.
Read below the statement from former President Lula:
PRESS RELEASE
Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva clarifies that the information published today by journalist Kennedy Alencar on CBN radio, stating that he suggested replacing Finance Minister Guido Mantega, is completely unfounded.
Finance Minister Guido Mantega has rendered great service in managing the country's economy and is known for his competence and seriousness in leading the ministry.
Below is a news item that has just been posted on Valor Pro, the investor relations service of the Valor Econômico newspaper:
Lula did not suggest Meirelles to replace Mantega, says Planalto.
Price
20/06/2013 15:16:45
President Dilma Rousseff has just spoken with former President Lula, who is expected to release a statement soon denying that he suggested to Dilma that she replace Finance Minister Guido Mantega with former Central Bank President Henrique Meirelles. This information comes from the Planalto Palace, which assures that such a proposal was never "heard" by the president.
Rumors about Meirelles being appointed to head economic policy, as an attempt to regain lost confidence, have been fueled for some time by the market, politicians, and people close to the former president.
Other names occasionally emerge as potential replacements for Mantega.
The Planalto Palace denies that Mantega is leaving the government.
Meirelles met with Lula this week and they discussed the core of the economic problem and how to overcome it. Meirelles spoke about the loss of confidence in the government from both the external and internal markets. The former president of the Central Bank believes that the country is still fundamentally sound – it has foreign exchange reserves, the net debt as a proportion of GDP is quite reasonable, and unemployment is minimal.
With the restoration of confidence, it would therefore not be difficult to re-establish a certain order.