"There is no option for the PT in 2014 other than Dilma."

Valter Lima, from Sergipe 247, and Leonardo Attuch - A week ago, in the small town of Indiaroba, in Sergipe, Governor Marcelo Déda, of the Workers' Party, practically launched President Dilma Rousseff's reelection campaign in a speech punctuated with quotes from Camões. Déda recalled the figure of the Old Man of Restelo, who predicted that Portuguese voyages to India would not succeed, drawing a comparison with those who contest the new energy sector policy. Today, he is one of the PT members closest to former President Lula and also to President Dilma. And he assures that there is no doubt about the succession in 2014. "From the point of view of objective, and also subjective, conditions, there is no other option for the PT than Dilma," he said. Check out below the main excerpts from the exclusive interview given to 247, which, this Wednesday, officially launches Sergipe 247, another arm of our network:

247 - A week ago, you participated in an event that was practically a launch of President Dilma Rousseff's candidacy for re-election in 2014. Within the PT (Workers' Party), is this issue resolved, or is there still a possibility that former President Lula could return?

Marcelo Déda - From the point of view of objective, and also subjective, conditions, the PT (Workers' Party) has no other option than Dilma. However, there's something that leaves our opponents very confused. The foundation of the political relationship in Brazil between successor and predecessor is crisis. There was a crisis between Itamar Franco and Fernando Henrique Cardoso. They publicly argued with each other, disputing the DNA of the Real Plan. In state governments and city halls, it's the same thing. But Dilma and Lula are different. The foundation of their relationship is loyalty, and we Brazilians weren't used to that. Another new aspect is the relationship of permanent dialogue, which should be seen as natural, but still surprises many people. This relationship, instead of becoming a source of crisis, has become a political asset.

247 - But some see former President Lula as a form of patronage over President Dilma, and also in other cases, such as in the São Paulo city hall.

Déda - It would be madness for a mayor, governor, or president of the Republic, having within their party a political and popular leader like former President Lula, who has such a great legacy, to refuse dialogue out of vanity or fear of being perceived as patronage. Regarding President Dilma, with each passing day, I am more surprised by her values ​​and qualities. Dialogue with a predecessor is a phenomenon that, for example, democracy cherishes. They are a source of experience, especially in times of crisis. It's a rich dialogue. Today, we are experiencing an international crisis focused on Europe, and former President Lula faced something similar in 2008 and 2009, which focused on the United States. Dialogue between the two serves Brazil. Furthermore, from a political standpoint, Dilma is from the PT (Workers' Party), Lula is from the PT, and it was Lula who launched Dilma's candidacy.

247 - But this confuses the opponents, who don't know whether to attack him or her.

Déda - The obvious always confuses people. In Brazil, the exception was the rule. For example: Itamar having elected Fernando Henrique, and Fernando Henrique having taken from his government the great achievement that was the Real Plan. Dilma does not contest Lula's legacy. On the contrary, she values ​​this legacy and deepens it, building her own agenda of change, with new policies, such as in energy, interest rates, and various other fields. Dilma reaffirms that Lula's legacy is part of her governmental experience, but she innovates not only with other public policies, but also with her style and her ability to be loyal to the PT, the former president, and his coalition, without giving up her uniqueness.

247 - The thing is, loyalty in politics is not something common.

Déda - Yes. In fact, if you look at a large portion of the media editorials throughout the past year, there is disappointment with the lack of a break and with the constant reaffirmation of this loyalty.

247 - With Dilma and Lula working together, will Eduardo Campos have room to launch his candidacy for the PSB?

Déda - The move that Eduardo Campos and the PSB have been making is a predictable one in any political scene. It's like that guy who spent the whole year at the gym lifting weights. Then summer arrives. He's not going to go to the beach in a long-sleeved shirt. He's going to show off his muscles to demonstrate the results of his effort. The PSB has grown and, as a consequence, Eduardo has become stronger. It's natural and legitimate for them to show off their muscles and tell President Dilma, the PT, and their allies that they want more influence. Eduardo trying to be a candidate is legitimate. The PSB launched Ciro, and that didn't prevent the PSB's alliance with the PT from being one of the most consolidated in our bloc. But is 2014 Eduardo's moment? I don't know.

247 - And what about the PMDB? Were the victories of Renan Calheiros and Henrique Alves good for Dilma's project, or did the PT excessively strengthen an ally that has a reputation for charging too much for its support?

Déda - The PMDB's influence stems less from the recent elections than from the unique nature of Brazilian politics, which has reserved a role as a shifting center for the PMDB. What's new about the weight the PMDB exerts on the Brazilian political balance? Nothing. Since the Itamar government, they have played an indispensable role in building governability in our coalition presidential system, because they have relinquished the ambition for power, understood as the desire to elect a president, which is inherent to any political party. It is indispensable for any president, whether it's Fernando Henrique, Lula, or Dilma, to sit down and discuss building a majority in Congress with the PMDB.

247 - But didn't they get too strong?

Déda - Are there problems? Yes. I, for example, am not in favor of a situation where the same party controls both houses of Congress. Ideally, there should be the possibility of a more pluralistic functioning of Congress and of the government's own base. But this is the reality, and what would be the alternative? To outlaw the PMDB? To shut down Congress?

247 - In your opinion, is the outrage expressed by some media outlets regarding Renan and Henrique's choices genuine?

Déda - I would say it's a tailor-made indignation, cut to measure. I never saw this indignation, for example, when Renan was Minister of Justice under Fernando Henrique. When I was a parliamentarian, I saw similar situations. It's not necessary to agree with the political styles of Renan and Henrique, but it's necessary to understand that a majority was consolidated in Congress and that majority produced that result. The alternative to that is dramatic. It's moving towards dispensing with the National Congress. Brazilian democracy is not the most perfect in the world, it has its contradictions, serious contradictions, but it, with its unique coalition presidentialism, guaranteed 25 years of stability, with full institutional framework and freedom of the press. With all the flaws that the Chamber and the Senate may have, these two houses were the mainstay of democracy. And that's no small thing.

247 - Is there an attempt to demoralize Congress?

Déda - What bothers the opposition and part of the media in Brazil the most is that Lula rejected the destiny and image of a caudillo. This is what distances Brazil from Chavismo, however great the advances Chávez promoted in Venezuela. Lula is a unique leader in Brazil and in the world. One of the great insights from his time as a union leader, which Lula still carries today, of a man destined to transform a country, is that he cannot be two steps ahead of the people nor two steps behind them. He must be at such a speed that his actions influence, but do not shackle or paralyze. Lula understood the need to build a party and consolidate a party organization with internal democracy. Later, he understood the need to build alliances. And he understood that the PT's limitations were not sufficient to govern the Brazilian nation. The only element that would make his return possible, which in my view is distant, would be a conjuncture factor. A change in the political reality such that Dilma would not have the objective conditions to be a candidate. But Dilma, who is already the face of the administration, has demonstrated an enormous political capacity to lead the government and to remain the best candidate for Lula, for the PT, for the PMDB, for Gilberto Kassab, and even for Eduardo Campos.

247 - Even for Eduardo Campos?

Déda - Yes, and I say this in no uncertain terms. Eduardo will have a brighter future in Brazilian politics the more successful this project that Lula and Dilma have been leading is. That's why I don't see Eduardo building an alliance with other forces. People from the Northeast use an expression that Luiz Gonzaga made famous: the "matulão," a suitcase tied with string. When people from the Northeast migrated, they had little to take materially, and everything fit in the "matulão"—clothes, money, and pictures of their dearest relatives. Leaving the "matulão" behind would make returning impossible. Eduardo is part of our project and is also from the Northeast like me. And he won't leave behind the "matulão" he built with Lula and Dilma. But this is an assessment, not a sentence. He is a courageous man, and the presidency, as the old Tancredo Neves used to say, is destiny.

247 - Governor Jaques Wagner of Bahia has already said that he could be the coalition's candidate in 2018.

Déda - I share that position. And the way we, from the Workers' Party, have to think about 2018 must be much more generous than simply remaining in power for the longest possible time. Eduardo is certainly one of the possibilities. What cannot happen is the PT demanding eternal loyalty from the PSB, nor the PSB asking the PT to immediately discard its own alternative in 2018. The construction of the project happens along the way.

247 - In your view, is the PSDB still a viable alternative for power in Brazil?

Déda - The PSDB played an important historical role in building stability with the Real Plan. But after that, they found themselves in such a narrow corner that they no longer even represent the industrial bourgeoisie. They only speak to the world of finance. It would be good for the country if we had a PSDB that collaborated more with public debate. They got lost in the neoliberal agenda. So much so that they are capable of fighting against the reduction of energy tariffs, which is an essential element in reducing the "Brazil Cost".

247 - How do you assess the current state of the judicialization of politics?

Déda - What worries me most about Brazil today is seeing an opponent abandon the public sphere and instead seek a judge. The great evil of the judicialization of Brazilian politics is that its defenders strengthen an atavistic mindset in Brazil: that politics and politicians are dispensable. By directing all their demands to the Judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Brazilian opposition and a large part of the media are promoting a movement that threatens democracy.

247 - Coup?

Déda - I am very cautious about identifying a coup-plotting tendency in the movements of Brazilian politics. What frightens me, however, is the way politicians are trying, through judicial means, to diminish the political standing of the Workers' Party or the image of President Lula. It's a movement that, in the end, will increasingly turn our opposition into a hostage of its own paranoia. First, the press replaced the opposition. Now, the Judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office are fulfilling that role. And that's not a good move.

Discover: here The excerpts in which Governor Marcelo Déda speaks about the political dispute in Sergipe.