The search for a new Brasília

As a resident of Brasília for over 30 years, with each celebration of the city's anniversary, I ask myself what I can do as a citizen and politician to improve the capital of our country.

What can we do to transform Dom Bosco's dream into a great 21st-century city? How can we honor Juscelino Kubitschek's audacity in realizing Lúcio Costa's firm and symbolic design—two intersecting lines, one of them arched—to take possession of the untouched immensity of the Central Plateau? The best way is to seek solutions that guarantee us a future of progress and peace.

Surely two of the passengers on the FAB (Brazilian Air Force) plane that landed on October 2, 1956, on an improvised airstrip in virgin scrubland—President Juscelino Kubitschek and architect Oscar Niemeyer—were already envisioning a city of the future as they gazed at the immense horizon unfolding before their eyes, devoid of roads, electricity, or communication systems.

They were visionaries. They lived to see the real Brasília and be proud of it. They did not imagine, however, that the city would face so many challenges five decades later. Despite the enormous circulation of wealth, the problems are immense, requiring political will and the participation of organized society.

Primarily due to the direct effect of Brasília, the per capita income of the Central-West region is currently above the Brazilian average. The region where it is currently located represented just over 1% of the Central-West's GDP until 1960, jumping to an impressive 40% of the regional GDP in 2007.

Despite all this progress, the initiatives to protect the city and the environment undertaken by those with environmental and social awareness over the years seem to have no effect here. The city has exploded in the shape of an airplane, swelled haphazardly, destroyed the Cerrado surrounding it, and polluted the water sources.

Thirty-three conservation units were created, but 73% of the Cerrado biome in the Federal District is destroyed. We should have 500 inhabitants in the Plano Piloto (the central area of ​​Brasília), but our number is now five times greater in Brasília and surrounding cities. Planned to have few cars, each year an additional 10% of vehicles makes the daily traffic jams in the city unbearable.

The decentralized commerce between the city blocks, designed to be easily accessible by residents of the superblocks, is now the king of double parking. Valet parking attendants from restaurants and shops charge exorbitant prices but use the street itself to park, occupying spaces meant for ordinary citizens.

Social inequality is another serious problem in the capital. Brasília is the fourth most unequal city in Brazil and the 16th most unequal in the world, according to the United Nations. Where does this situation lead us? Obviously, to more violence, a higher rate of robberies, homicides, and illicit drug use.

The city's vast green spaces, which gave us a sense of freedom and tranquility, are increasingly being invaded by black plastic tents used by homeless people to sleep, eat, or take drugs.

The construction of Brasília changed Brazil in the eyes of the world and brought positive consequences for the Central-West region. The Federal District now functions as an economic hub for a vast area of ​​the Brazilian interior, extending beyond the borders of the Central-West region.

But all this progress coexists with irregularities. Populist and irresponsible governments in the Federal District allowed and encouraged invasions of environmental protection areas to become irreversible. They ushered in an era of political favors, of exchanging votes for land grants, of facilitating land grabbing for the sale of areas to irregular condominiums.

Today we have around 600 homes without legal documentation, approximately 500 irregular condominiums, and about 100 commercial establishments operating without a business license.

This government's goal is to transform Brasília into a legal city. My political office has been working tirelessly with the GDF (Government of the Federal District) towards this goal. We held two public hearings to listen to and raise awareness among business owners on this matter, and we already have Governor Agnelo's promise that a bill to this effect will be submitted to the CLDF (Legislative Chamber of the Federal District) by the end of this semester.

As part of this personal commitment, I have also participated in the effort to regularize irregular condominiums and occupations in various areas of the city: the Ceilândia, Por do Sol, and Sol Nascente sectors, one of the most violent areas in the region; the Mansões Paraíso sector in Gama; and several condominiums in the Jardim Botânico region.

Similarly, we fought for and were victorious in the approval of Law 4748/2012, regarding the regulation, organization, and operation of open-air markets in the Federal District; Law 4954/12, which established criteria for the exploitation of economic activity in public spaces, guaranteeing rights to permit holders and shopkeepers at the Plano Piloto Bus Station, Mercado das Flores, Galeria dos Estados, Parque da Cidade, and all bus and metro terminals; and the extension of the Kiosk Law until December 2013.

The preservation of what remains of the Cerrado, the water source responsible for feeding rivers that flow into the northern, northeastern, and southern regions of the country, will also depend on each of us. A bill I authored, currently under consideration in the Chamber of Deputies, establishes the District Policy for Environmental Services and creates the District Program for Payment for Environmental Services "Water Caretakers." Upon its approval, legal residents of areas that contain springs, streams, and rivers will be able to receive payment for activities aimed at restoring and recovering these ecosystems.

Throughout my years in public life, I have learned that we must have legislation that is up-to-date according to the interests of the majority of society; otherwise, we will have the law of the strongest being put into practice, and this is not always the best. There is still time to be indignant and join the government in its constant effort to bring Brasília into compliance with the law, to defend its ecosystem, its urban heritage, and the interests of its population.