Corruption in Paraná is much greater than what is being reported, denounces Zeca Dirceu.

Paraná 247 - According to the newspaper Gazeta do Povo, through a plea bargain agreement, Eduardo Lopes de Souza, owner of Construtora Valor, who was arrested in Operation "Quadro Negro," which investigates the embezzlement of approximately R$ 20 million from the Paraná State Department of Education, spoke about the embezzlement scheme in state school construction projects and accused Ademar Traiano, president of the State Legislative Assembly, and Governor Beto Richa of participating in the scheme. The embezzled funds allegedly financed PSDB political campaigns in Paraná. The name of Valdir Rossoni, Richa's right-hand man, appears in the scheme. One of the companies under investigation operated from the same address as his political office, in the Palladium Building.

The irregularities in the construction and renovation of schools in Paraná were not committed by just one, but by five construction companies that operated according to the "Blackboard" model and financed PSDB campaigns in the state. Of these, two were mentioned in Lopes Souza's testimony: Talento MI and Machado Valente.

"Maurício Fanini (former director of the Superintendency of Education) commented to me that a scheme similar to mine was also happening with Talento, MI, and Machado Valente, in relation to which there would also have been advance measurements and transfers of resources destined for the campaign of Governor Beto Richa of the PSDB," said the whistleblower.

One of the construction companies mentioned, Machado Valente, was building the State Center for Professional Education (Ceep) in Campo Largo. The project was budgeted at R$ 7 million and should have been completed in early 2015. However, due to a series of irregularities and delays, the Court of Auditors (TC) ordered the work to be halted and R$ 2,8 million to be seized, which must be returned by the construction company to the public treasury. MI Construtora was also building two schools in Guarapuava: Pedro Carli and Leni Marlene Jacob. The court also found irregularities and ordered the return of R$ 1,6 million.

Three other construction companies, not mentioned in Lopes Souza's testimony, were also convicted by the Court of Auditors. These are: Atro Construção Civil, Brioschi Engenharia, and TS Construção Civil, which will have to return a combined total of almost R$ 700.

According to federal deputy Zeca Dirceu of the Workers' Party (PT), who has made public education one of the priority areas in his mandate, "I see this embezzlement scheme as something very serious, as it caused the destruction of public education and harmed teachers by stealing from the pension fund," he said.

This scheme to divert funds from education projects is not the first scandal involving Beto Richa. On the Jornal Nacional page on Globo's website, a news report stated that the governor had already been mentioned by Odebrecht whistleblowers. According to one of them, Valter Lana, Richa had received R$ 3 million in the last three campaigns. His name appeared linked to two nicknames, Brigão and Piloto, in Odebrecht spreadsheets.

"The payments were arranged, planned, and executed within the Drousys system, structured by Odebrecht's Structured Operations sector. We adopted the codename 'Pilot' for these payments, as a reference to Dr. Beto Richa. The payments were made on the following dates: September 9, 2014, R$ 500; September 18, 2014, R$ 1 million; and September 25, 2014, R$ 1 million," said the informant.

The governor was also investigated by the Attorney General's Office (PGR), suspected of passive corruption, money laundering, and falsifying documents. At the time, according to RPC, the request to open an investigation against the governor, made to the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), indicated that his reelection campaign had received money obtained through a corruption scheme in the State Revenue Service. A tax auditor, who was part of the scheme in the Paraná tax office, stated in a plea bargain that he and his colleagues raised approximately R$ 2 million through undeclared funds in 2014. The corruption scandal even involved the governor's wife.

As if all that wasn't enough, there was also the massacre of teachers in the Paraná state education system in 2015. According to the Carta Capital website, around 20 teachers were protesting against changes to the pension system in front of the Legislative Assembly and were beaten by the police. More than 200 people were injured and eight were in serious condition. "That was a bitter day, full of pain and disrespect for the education sector and, especially, for the teachers, who are our heroes. I am certain that that massacre will never be forgotten by the professionals, by society, and by me. What the state government has been doing is shameful," concluded Zeca Dirceu.