Brazil's Attorney General's Office says it has overturned an injunction that suspended Moreira's appointment.
Brazil's Attorney General's Office (AGU) reported that the Federal Regional Court (TRF) of the 1st region overturned the decision of the Federal District Court that suspended Moreira Franco's appointment to the General Secretariat of the Presidency; the AGU contested the main argument of the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit that justified the injunction, stating that Moreira Franco's situation is "very different" from that of former President Lula.
From Infomoney - The Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region overturned the decision of the Federal District Court that suspended Moreira Franco's appointment to the General Secretariat of the Presidency, according to information from the Attorney General's Office.
The Federal Court in Brasília decided yesterday to suspend the appointment of Minister Moreira Franco to the position. The preliminary injunction was issued by Judge Eduardo Rocha Penteado, of the 14th Federal Court, and responded to a popular action filed by three citizens.
In his decision, the magistrate understood that Moreira Franco's situation is similar to the case of the appointment of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to the Civil House by former president Dilma Rousseff last year. On that occasion, Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Gilmar Mendes suspended Lula's appointment, understanding that the measure was taken to grant privileged jurisdiction to the former president and prevent him from being judged in the Lava Jato cases by federal judge Sérgio Moro.
"It is clear from the records that Moreira Franco was mentioned, with compromising content, in the Odebrecht plea bargain within the scope of Operation Lava Jato. It is also clear from the records that his appointment as Minister of State occurred only three days after the approval of the plea bargains, which will imply a change of jurisdiction. Therefore, evidence analogous to that which justified the removal ordered in writ of mandamus no. 34.070/DF [Lula case] is present in this specific case," the judge ruled.
The Attorney General's Office (AGU) contested the main argument of the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit that formed the basis for the injunction, stating that Moreira Franco's situation is quite different from that of Lula. Unlike the former president, Moreira Franco already held a position in the current government, as secretary of the Investment Partnership Program (PPI), created in September 2016. According to the AGU, the transformation of the position was intended to strengthen the government program.
In the appeal filed, the Attorney General's Office (AGU) also stated that maintaining the injunction could cause serious harm to public and administrative order, capable of causing "irreparable damage" to public administration and would blatantly violate the separation of powers, drastically encroaching on the sphere of competence of the Executive Branch.