Agripino already considers Demosthenes' expulsion a certainty.
The expulsion process for Senator Demstenes Torres hasn't even begun, but the DEM leadership no longer sees how to keep Carlinhos Cachoeira's friend in the party; the party's discomfort is evident. The House, the Senate, is in check," summarized the national president of the DEM, José Agripino Maia.
Agency Brazil - The expulsion process for Senator Demóstenes Torres (DEM-GO) hasn't even started yet, and the president of the Democrats party, Senator José Agripino Maia (RN), already considers his departure a certainty. According to Agripino, Demóstenes was "a disappointment" and "it's unlikely the party won't take the position" of expelling him.
“The partisan unease is evident. The House, the Senate, is in check. The political class, as a whole, is too. But what is most in check is the party's programmatic formulation. It is the partisan conduct of the Democrats, which cannot tolerate the loss of ethical standards,” declared the president of the DEM after a meeting with the party leadership at his home in Brasília.
According to Agripino Maia, Demóstenes Torres repeatedly deviated from party conduct when he became intimately involved with the controller of illegal gambling in the state of Goiás, Carlos Augusto de Almeida Ramos, known as Carlinhos Cachoeira. Telephone recordings made by the Federal Police caught the senator and the gambling boss in conversations discussing money, privileged information, and the fate of bills that were of interest to Cachoeira. Furthermore, the senator himself admitted that he received household appliances worth R$ 30 as a wedding gift from Carlinhos Cachoeira.
Those participating in the meeting at Agripino Maia's house included the leader of the DEM party in the Chamber of Deputies, Congressman Antônio Carlos Magalhães Neto (BA), Congressman Ronaldo Caiado (DEM-GO), and the Vice-Governor of Goiás, José Eliton. Demóstenes did not participate in the meeting and did not comment on the opening of the expulsion process. He will have one week to defend himself before the Democrats announce their final decision. In the opinion of leader ACM Neto, Demóstenes could have already presented his defense but did not.
“I think it’s past time for the senator to speak up. This is a wish of the Democrats, still his [Demóstenes Torres'] party. And also of the National Congress and Brazilian society. But the party’s deadline has expired,” he declared. For ACM Neto, the possibility of the senator remaining in the DEM “is very difficult.”
The leadership of the Democrats party, however, does not intend to appeal to the Electoral Court to claim Demóstenes Torres's mandate should he be revoked. According to Agripino Maia, the party cannot accuse him of party disloyalty and will let Torres's colleagues in the Senate decide on the matter. "We have no grounds for accusing him of party disloyalty. Now, his mandate is in the hands of the Senate Ethics Committee," declared the president of the DEM party.
Senator Demóstenes Torres is facing an inquiry at the Supreme Federal Court based on recordings made by the Federal Police that resulted in Operation Monte Carlo. Minister Ricardo Lewandowski authorized the lifting of the senator's bank secrecy and requested an investigation into parliamentary amendments and projects he reported on to determine if Cachoeira benefited from them. The illegal gambling operator, who is currently imprisoned, is accused of controlling the slot machine mafia and other gambling operations in Goiás and of corrupting police officers and politicians in the state. In addition to Demóstenes Torres, Representatives Sandes Júnior (PP-GO), Carlos Lereia (PSDB-GO), and Stepan Nercessian (PPS-RJ) also had their phone conversations with Cachoeira wiretapped by the Federal Police. Nercessian today requested a temporary leave of absence from his party.