In a statement, the Pernambuco state government says that Armando was negligent regarding the drought.
After Senator Armando Monteiro Neto (PTB-PE) stated that the governor of Pernambuco, Paulo Câmara (PSB-PE), did not anticipate actions to combat the worst drought in the last 50 years, the State Government reacted and called the parliamentarian negligent regarding the problem; "Senator Armando remained silent when the Dilma government, of which he was a minister, practically halted the Agreste Water Pipeline. He simply remained silent," says an excerpt from the statement signed by the Secretary of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Nilton Mota.
Pernambuco 247 - After Senator Armando Monteiro Neto (PTB-PE) said that the governor of Pernambuco, Paulo Câmara (PSB-PE), did not anticipate actions to combat the worst drought in the last 50 years, the State Government reacted and called the parliamentarian negligent in relation to the problem.
In a statement, the Secretary of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Nilton Mota, said that the state did its part and "Governor Paulo Câmara and his colleagues from the Northeast have been alerting the Union to the problem of drought in the region since the Dilma government, the same government of which the senator was a part. Senator Armando remained silent when the Dilma government, of which he was a minister, practically stopped the Agreste Water Pipeline. He simply remained silent," says part of the statement.
Read the full text of the State Government's statement on the matter.
It is regrettable that Senator Armando Monteiro is attempting to take electoral advantage of a drought that has plagued millions of people in the Northeast of Brazil for six years, and not just those in Pernambuco.
Of the R$2,5 billion invested so far by the Paulo Câmara government, R$682 million went to water resources, representing 30%. Compesa alone invested over R$500 million, bringing the total investment in the area to almost R$1,2 billion. Perhaps the senator, living so far from Pernambuco, is unaware of this information.
Governor Paulo Câmara and his colleagues from the Northeast have been alerting the federal government to the problem of drought in the region since the Dilma government, the same government in which the senator served.
Senator Armando remained silent when the Dilma government, of which he was a minister, practically halted the Agreste Water Pipeline project. He simply remained silent.
Governor Paulo Câmara didn't stand still and ordered the construction of an alternative to bring water from the Mata Sul region to the Agreste region, through the Pirangi System, which will capture water from the river of the same name in Catende, in the Mata Sul region, to supplement the Prata System. It is scheduled to become operational in early 2017.
A few days ago, Governor Paulo led a meeting of Northeastern governors that was decisive in negotiating with the Federal Government to secure more resources for our region. Furthermore, tomorrow (December 9th), the Federal Government will issue a Service Order for the execution of a R$ 34 million project to bring water from the Sirigi Dam (Mata Norte) to nine municipalities in the Northern Agreste region. Since the beginning of 2015, the Government of Pernambuco had made the project available to President Dilma, who did nothing.
The question then becomes, what productive initiative has the senator taken on this issue so far?
The Pernambuco government held a meeting with the federal delegation to discuss Pernambuco's priorities in the General Budget of the Union, but the senator was absent. In partnership with the federal delegation, Governor Paulo managed to prioritize parliamentary amendments for the area of water resources.
"It is not with opportunistic speeches on the Senate floor—aimed solely at personal electoral projects—that we will confront and overcome the challenge of living with drought."