The Senate’s Economic Affairs Committee (CAE) installed, this Wednesday (4), a subcommittee to monitor investigations related to the facts and conduct attributed to the Master Banksuspected of billion-dollar fraud in the financial market.
The so-called Bando Master Commission will have 13 members and will be coordinated by senator Renan Calheiros (MDB-AL), who stated that the case is the biggest bank fraud in Brazilian history.
“Given the severity and magnitude of those injured, [esse caso] It must be faced head on, no matter who it hurts. There will be absolutely no retaliation against anyone from this Master Commission. But any senator or deputy should know that, if there is guilt, there will be no omission from this commission”, highlighted the senator from Alagoas.
The collegiate was installed amid requests for the installation of parliamentary commissions of inquiry (CPIs) into the bank scandal led by businessman Daniel Vorcaro, with fraud that could reach R$17 billion.
“We are not going to compete with the CPI, no. Our work will be merely complementary, because, as you know, it is the exclusive responsibility of the Economic Affairs Committee of the Federal Senate to supervise the financial system”, Renan told journalists.
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Commission powers
According to Renan, the commission will be able to propose the breaking of banking or telephone secrecy, visit authorities, carry out investigations and even summon investigators and witnesses.
“Complementary Law 105 of 2001 establishes that the breach of confidentiality can be proposed by this committee to the plenary and, if approved by the plenary of the Federal Senate, the respective breaches of confidentiality can be carried out”, he said.
Lula
The senator also stated that he will question President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva about the meeting that Master’s owner, Daniel Vorcaro, had had.
“Everyone who was at the meeting can collaborate with this commission. We intend to ask the President of the Republic, in writing, some questions about the incident. If he can answer us, great. This, without a doubt, will help in the investigation we intend to carry out”, he highlighted.
Facade of Banco Master in São Paulo – Photo: Rovena Rosa/Agência Brasil
Central Bank
Senator Renan Calheiros announced that the commission will meet with the president of the Central Bank (BC), Gabriel Galípolo, this Wednesday afternoon (4) to discuss the topic. For the president of the Master Commission, the Central Bank took a long time to liquidate the bank under investigation.
“Let’s bring him [Galípolo] also to speak to the commission, but first we want to make this visit, because, in this case itself, no one other than the Central Bank can collaborate with the information, because in the financial system, everything that is done remains there with fingerprints. So the Central Bank is fundamental in clarifying the facts”, he argued.
BRB
Another focus of the investigation by the CAE Master Bank Commission will be the attempt to purchase Banco Master by Banco Regional de Brasília (BRB), public institution linked to the government of the Federal District (GDF).
“They tried to sell a broken bank, with no assets or poor assets, to a public institution. Is it true that the Director of Supervision of the Central Bank sent messages pressuring BRB to buy Master? Is it true? These are the answers that this Master Commission intends to give”, he added.
TCU and liquidation of Banco Master
Calheiros also accused parliamentary leaders of putting pressure on the Federal Audit Court (TCU) to reverse the liquidation of Banco Master by the Central Bank.
“The Court of Auditors was blackmailed into liquidating the liquidation. Openly, in broad daylight, the Chamber leaders tried to vote to increase the FGC [Fundo Garantidor de Crédito] to R$ 1 million as part of this pressure”, he stated. The FGC is the insurance paid to investors in cases of bank failure. It currently covers up to R$ 250 thousand reais per investor.
According to the parliamentarian, the president of the Central Bank was “sought after by these authorities several times” under pressure to authorize the purchase of Master by BRB.
CPIs
A request for a parliamentary commission of inquiry (CPMI) was filed on Tuesday (3) by the opposition, with the signature of 42 senators and 238 federal deputies, a number higher than the minimum required. Authorization for the creation of the CPMI depends on the president of Congress, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), who has not yet commented on the issue.
There are other requests for CPIs in progress, such as the one led by deputy Rodrigo Rollemberg (PSB-DF). Upon arriving at the Chamber yesterday, President Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB) informed that he will analyze the CPI requests “at the appropriate time”.
The then PT leader in the Chamber, Lindbergh Farias (PT-RJ), informed that the party will support the CPI proposal from Rollemberg and the CPMI presented by Heloísa Helena (PSOL-RJ) and Fernanda Melchionna (PSOL-RS), but not the proposal from the opposition led by the PL.
“We are not going to get defensive on a matter that our government is investigating, which aims to clarify everything and I am sure that a lot of things will appear. What we are not going to do is sign the PL’s CPMI, including that the CPMI that they present has a distorted object. It is not to analyze Master’s banking frauds, they are trying to politicize it”, he stated.
