Aécio prepares speech highlighting "13 failures" of the PT (Workers' Party).
Under intense pressure from the PSDB leadership, which wants to see his candidacy launched immediately, the PSDB presidential hopeful will speak in the Senate about points that, in his view, are critical of the PT administration; among them, the performance of Petrobras, the return of inflation, the paralysis of PAC projects, and the crisis in public security and health; this initiative aims to contain Eduardo Campos' advance in the race for the presidency.
247 - Senator Aécio Neves (PSDB-MG), who is expected to be the PSDB candidate for the 2014 presidential election, will make his first concrete move as a presidential hopeful on the 27th. On that date, in a speech in the Senate, he will point out "13 failures" of the PT, in his view. The data, which has been compiled by the PSDB's advisors, involve high inflation, the drop in Petrobras's profits, and the paralysis of some PAC (Growth Acceleration Program) projects.
The move is a reaction to the intense pressure the senator from Minas Gerais has been receiving from the top leadership of the PSDB party to announce his candidacy immediately. The party president, Sergio Guerra, for example, has said that the pre-candidacy of Eduardo Campos, from the PSB party, is growing in the vacuum left by the PSDB and could even co-opt potential PSDB allies, such as Gilberto Kassab's PSD party.
Aécio, however, wants to first become the national president of the PSDB before fully committing to his candidacy. With control of the party machine, he would thwart movements to launch a candidate from São Paulo, such as José Serra or even Governor Geraldo Alckmin, who would forgo reelection. This weekend, Alckmin gave an interview in which he positioned himself as a potential candidate for the presidency in 2014.
Read below Vera Magalhães's note, in Folha's Painel column, about the speech Aécio will give on the 27th:
Is it going to happen now? - VERA MAGALHÃES - PANEL
Faced with internal pressure to adopt a more incisive rhetoric befitting a presidential candidate, Aécio Neves will point out, in a speech to the Senate scheduled for the 27th, "13 failures" of the PT (Workers' Party) in the federal government. Based on data gathered by PSDB (Brazilian Social Democracy Party) technicians, he will criticize Dilma Rousseff for "ineffectiveness" in the areas of security and health, delays in PAC (Growth Acceleration Program) projects, the return of inflation, and losses at Petrobras. This will be a rehearsal for the Minas Gerais politician to assume leadership of the party in May.