Dilma's coldness led Silva to fall alone and without a word.

247 – This time there was no lack of goodwill. The same President Dilma Rousseff who vociferously protested the debacle orchestrated by then-Minister Alfredo Nascimento of Transport in the first half of the year, has now acted with complete calm in the face of the crisis at the Ministry of Sport.

Taken by surprise in Europe by the first accusation from Prime Minister João Dias Ferreira, through Veja magazine, against Minister Orlando Silva, Dilma had a restrained initial reaction, reiterating her confidence in him and demanding proof regarding the alleged misappropriation of funds from the Ministry's coffers to NGOs controlled by the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB). At the same time, in a single order, she determined that Silva should leave Guadalajara, where he was accompanying the Brazilian delegation at the Pan American Games, to return to Brazil and explain himself. The president, at this point, was entirely consistent with her promise to allow the accused to defend themselves, without her direct interference in either the attack or the defense of her aide.

Regarding Orlando Silva, the president did not issue any public or private reprimand. Once back in Brazil, after her European trip, Dilma continued to demand proof of the allegations and reaffirmed that Silva, a minister of "five years" in government, still had her confidence. It was as if the president was working not exactly to oust her aide, but to make him fall on his own.

And that prevailed. Despite being spared Dilma's fury – when she removed the then Minister of Defense, Nelson Jobim, from office, the president acted with extreme cruelty, sending him directly from the Amazon to a cold and brief dismissal meeting at the Planalto Palace – Orlando Silva was overwhelmed by the facts, a succession of discoveries by the press that the agreements signed between the Ministry and the NGOs controlled by the PCdoB were notoriously promiscuous.

In Manaus, the day before yesterday, where she inaugurated a bridge over the Negro River alongside former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Dilma made yet another gesture in favor of the minister's continued tenure. Upon learning that Silva's voice was not among the 13 media items delivered by PM Dias to the Federal Police, the president even called the minister, encouraging him to believe that the worst of the crisis was over.

But new facts emerged. The biggest of them was the decision by Minister Carmem Lúcia of the Supreme Federal Court, who ordered an investigation into all agreements made by the ministry. Alongside this anticipated crackdown, Silva performed very poorly in a hearing yesterday before the Special Committee on the General Law of the World Cup, irritating the opposition by attempting to evade the main issue. "The best thing for the World Cup is for Orlando Silva to stay far away from it," attacked Congressman ACM Neto of the DEM party. That's what will happen from now on, when Silva, this afternoon, submits his resignation letter to the president.