Lula receives applause from Dilma and 'olé' chants at the Presidential Palace.

247 – President Dilma Rousseff ignored the controversy created by the various accounts of the conversation between former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes. To the accusation that Lula pressured Mendes to work towards postponing the vote on the Mensalão case, the president responded by transforming an awards ceremony at the Planalto Palace on Wednesday afternoon, the 30th, into a genuine act of support for the former president. Even without his presence, Dilma made a point of saying she was showing her support for Lula. "I am certain that I am paying this tribute because of Lula's commitment in Brazil to the issue of development and opportunity for the poorest in the country, and his international commitment to the fight for the eradication of poverty in the poor regions of our planet, which he knew well because they are similar to those in Brazil," said a very emotional Dilma.

Upon hearing the reference to the former president's name, the audience rose to their feet to applaud and chanted the old slogan: "Olé, olé, olá, Lula, Lula." This occurred during the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Award ceremony. Dilma said that "the right people, in the right places, at the right time, change processes," and took the opportunity to honor her predecessor for his initiatives to reduce poverty and inequality and for the development of the country.

The tribute came at a very opportune moment, just when the former president is embroiled in controversy with Minister Gilmar Mendes of the Supreme Federal Court. According to Mendes, Lula insinuated pressure to postpone the Mensalão trial when commenting on his trip to Berlin in 2009, when the minister met with Senator Demóstenes Torres, who fell from grace after his close relationship with the illegal gambling operator Carlinhos Cachoeira was revealed.