"Aécio Neves invented Marcio Lacerda"
Speaking to 247, the president of the PSDB in Minas Gerais, and the main interlocutor of Senator Aécio Neves in the state, federal deputy Marcus Pestana, assures that there is no possibility of a political break with the mayor of Belo Horizonte. He also says that the PSDB will not accept "just any name" from the PT for the vice-presidential candidate in the October elections.
Minas 247 - The president of the PSDB in Minas Gerais, federal deputy Marcus Pestana, assures: there is no possibility of a political break between Senator Aécio Neves, also a member of the PSDB, and the mayor of Belo Horizonte, Marcio Lacerda (PSB). In recent days, rumors have circulated, mainly in the press, that Aécio was behind the scenes encouraging the candidacy for mayor of Belo Horizonte of the state deputy from the PV party, Délio Malheiros.
In fact, it's not just rumors. The Green Party (PV) is a long-time ally of the PSDB (Brazilian Social Democracy Party) government in Minas Gerais, since Aécio's first term between 2003 and 2006. Délio Malheiros, in turn, is personally linked to the Minas Gerais senator and a long-time friend of his sister, Andrea Neves. Politically, it is in the PSDB's interest to have names that prevent Marcio Lacerda from becoming excessively strong in the state political landscape, since he is the clear favorite, with the support of a coalition of about 20 parties – including the PT (Workers' Party) and PSDB – to be mayor of the Minas Gerais capital in a new term.
“Aécio invented Lacerda,” says Pestana, the senator’s main interlocutor in Minas Gerais politics, in an interview with 247. “Pimentel helped, of course, but only secondarily.” Fernando Pimentel, from the PT (Workers' Party), current Minister of Development, was mayor of Belo Horizonte and was one of the architects of the alliance between PT and PSDB (Brazilian Social Democracy Party) members in favor of Lacerda in 2008. For Pestana, it “makes no sense, neither politically, nor personally, nor logically,” to speak of the former governor of Minas Gerais supporting any candidacy other than Lacerda’s. “I repeat that the mayor is Aécio’s creation; both are very strongly linked politically.”
Between April 2007 and May 2008, Lacerda served as Secretary of Economic Development in Minas Gerais, accepting an invitation from Aécio Neves himself. At the time closely linked to Lula's former minister Ciro Gomes, Lacerda was the necessary bridge for the PSDB candidate to further strengthen ties with Ciro and the PSB. Not surprisingly, he was appointed Mayor of Belo Horizonte months later.
Pestana also rules out any chance of the PSDB joining forces with the PT for the city council elections. "That would only happen if the PT didn't nominate the vice-mayor candidate," the federal deputy stated. Regarding the vice-mayor candidate, the president of the PSDB in Minas Gerais was also emphatic: "We will not accept just any name from the PT," he assured 247. "Past experience shows that it has to be someone who truly believes in the alliance in favor of Lacerda." He is referring to the current vice-mayor, Roberto Carvalho, who clashed with the mayor last year and now leads the PT's resistance to the alliance with the PSDB. The PT state deputy André Quintão, for example, is a name that has been ruled out, although he has always been mentioned as a possible vice-mayor candidate.