PSB vice-president confirms Aécio's action against the alliance.
Roberto Amaral, second in command of the PSB party nationwide, acknowledges the interference of the PSDB senator in the break between the socialists and the PT party over the reelection of the mayor of Belo Horizonte, and says that the two parties will be together in 2014, supporting Dilma. This raises the question: Is Lacerda practically joining the PSDB?
Mines 247 – Rui Falcão, national president of the PT (Workers' Party), downplayed the issue and refused to confirm that Aécio Neves (PSDB) interfered in the PT's withdrawal from the coalition with the PSDB and PSB in Belo Horizonte. However, Roberto Amaral, vice-president of the PSB, puts his finger on the wound: according to him, there was indeed direct interference from the senator in the process.
Amaral made a point of stressing that PSB and PT will remain together and that the trend is towards strengthening the national alliance. In an interview with the Poder Online column, by journalist Tales Faria, he guaranteed that his party will work hard for the re-election of President Dilma Rousseff in 2014. He lamented Aécio's actions in the episode in the capital of Minas Gerais and said that the senator is trying to undermine the relationship between PSB and PT.
Roberto Amaral's statements call into question what stance Belo Horizonte's mayor, Márcio Lacerda (PSB), will take. Running for re-election, he will carry the natural burden of defeat if he loses. But if he wins, he could find himself at a crossroads in the 2014 presidential campaign. If Roberto Amaral is right, the PSB is likely to align itself with the PT and support Dilma. Lacerda, in turn, has grown quite close to Aécio in recent days, even after breaking with the PT. If the mayor follows the party's lead, it will displease the senator, Dilma's most likely opponent in 2014. For this very reason, speculation has grown that Lacerda could end up in the PSDB. The game is complex, and the outcome of this year's election in Belo Horizonte will be decisive.
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The national vice-president of the PSB, Roberto Amaral, confirms the suspicions of the national president of the PT, Rui Falcão, that there was pressure from Senator Aécio Neves (PSDB-MG) and the PSDB governor Antônio Anastasia for the PSB of Belo Horizonte to break with the PT.
In an exclusive interview with the newspaper "Brasil Econômico," Rui Falcão declared that the PSB of Belo Horizonte betrayed the PT, as it had signed a document committing to form a coalition with the PT also on the ticket for city councilors.
– I deeply regret that Senator Aécio Neves and Governor Anastasia interfered in this matter. This only shows how much the national leadership of the PT and PSB parties need to be attentive to the movements of their adversaries aimed at disrupting the relationship between the two parties. It is clear that Aécio and the PSDB are eyeing 2014.
Roberto Amaral avoids any controversy with Rui Falcão:
– Rui is my friend and I'm not going to get into a polemic. Unfortunately, we had this problem in Belo Horizonte, but I'm sure that, after the elections, the episode will be overcome. The important thing is that we work to strengthen the national alliance between the PSB and the PT, aiming for the re-election of President Dilma Rousseff in 2014. That's what the opponents want to undermine.