Lula says there will be no ‘impediment of bureaucracy’ to recover Rio Grande do Sul | Policy

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated this Sunday (5) that there will be no “bureaucratic impediment” for public authorities to adopt measures at the federal level to help recover the state of Rio Grande do Sul.

“There will be no impediment from bureaucracy for us to recover the greatness of this state,” said Lula, who guaranteed resources for the reconstruction of highways.

Lula made the statement when participating, in Porto Alegre (RS), in a presentation by members of the federal and state governments of the actions already adopted in the region. The state is facing an unprecedented tragedy, caused by heavy rains.

The speech was made after the political group flew over the areas affected by the floods in Rio Grande do Sul.

Shortly before Lula’s statement, the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), defended that the National Congress discuss some “totally extraordinary” measure, and the vice-president of the Federal Supreme Court, Luiz Edson Fachin, spoke of the possibility to adopt a “special” and “transitional” legal regime due to the tragedy.

On a visit to RS, Lula talks about the flood situation in the state

“We owe a lot to Rio Grande do Sul in all aspects. I wanted to say to the people of Rio Grande do Sul: what we are doing is giving Rio Grande do Sul what it deserves. If it has always helped Brazil, I think it’s time for Brazil to help Rio Grande do Sul”, stated Lula.

“I am very pleased with the presence of Lira, Pacheco, Fachin, Bruno Dantas. I wanted to hear from them what they said. In other words, there will be no impediment from bureaucracy for us to recover the grandeur of this state. It can stay sure of that. What is being said is being recorded”, added the president.

Lula disembarked at the Canoas air base and, by helicopter, flew over areas affected by the Guaíba flood in Porto Alegre and the metropolitan region. Then, in the capital, he led a meeting with government officials from Rio Grande do Sul and mayors.

At the meeting, which was attended by government ministers, Lula demanded actions to help Rio Grande do Sul. For the Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva, Lula asked for a prevention plan to avoid climate “disgraces”.

“Marina, who is committed to presenting me with a plan to prevent climate accidents, in other words, we need to stop chasing misfortune, we need to, you know, know in advance what misfortune could happen for us”, added the PT member.

For the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, the president asked for an alternative for renegotiating the states’ debt in order to help them have investment power.

“Comrade Fernando Haddad, he is very sensitive to the causes of the states’ debts and I hope he makes an agreement in advance with the states, because there is no point in the states not having any investment capacity”, pondered Lula.

Another area hit hard by the tragedy were the roads. Until Friday, at least 48 points were closed due to flooding, drains that gave way under water pressure and even sections where blocks of asphalt were washed away by the rain.

Therefore, President Lula asked the Minister of Transport, Renan Filho, to pay greater attention to the situation of highways in the state.

“I know that the state has a difficult financial situation, I know that there are many roads with problems. I want to say that the federal government through the Ministry of Transport will help you to recover the state roads,” said Lula.

Lula also said that the Minister of Cities, Jáder Filho, should prevent the reconstruction of houses in the same places hit by this week’s floods.

“He is here to know that we have to rebuild many houses, and when rebuilding houses, we need to take into account with the mayors that we cannot allow people to rebuild houses in the same place as the house that fell. City halls, the State and the Union need to locate more peaceful land for people to be able to rebuild their nest”, he stated.

The Minister of National Integration, Waldez Goés, stated that actions to rescue people continue, but that measures are also being adopted to reestablish services in municipalities where the rivers begin to recede, such as the Vale do Taquari region.

“It’s time for us to work hard on reestablishment,” he said.

The president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira, stated that ‘political differences have to be well aside, away from any politicization’ to help the state’s recovery.

The president of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, declared that there is a need for ‘quick and urgent measures’ to help Rio Grande do Sul.

“We are in a war and, in fact, in a war, President Lula, I know that is your feeling, there are no limitations, there are no legal restrictions in common times. There is a need to remove bureaucracy from the shelf and table, the locks and limitations so that Rio Grande do Sul lacks nothing for its reconstruction,” he said.

The president of the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU), Bruno Dantas, made the body’s technicians available and stated that in “exceptional moments we must also use more flexible rules so that the final objective, the protection of citizens, is met in an efficient manner. efficient and effective”.

Governor Eduardo Leite (PSDB) reaffirmed that it is the state’s ‘biggest climate catastrophe’ and cited the possibility of ‘shortages’ and ‘collapse’ in different areas, as Salgado Filho airport is closed, part of the highways are blocked and thousands of families are without electricity

“We are monitoring all the impact on the production chains that will have, because the animals do not arrive, the slaughterhouse was also affected, collapsed, this affects the lives of the workers naturally, but there is also a supply issue. So actions will have to be taken in this area. The impact on industry, due to inputs that will not arrive, or the companies that supply and that were affected, stoppages in industrial plants, which will require economic measures”, declared the governor.

Leite stressed that the floods affected more than 300 of the 496 municipalities in the state, stated that it will be necessary to provide credit lines and defended that tax legislation be made more flexible along the lines of what occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Public authorities here need to see and understand, President Lira, President Pacheco, […] The public sector is suffocated by this situation and will not be able to provide answers if we do not address exceptional actions also from a fiscal point of view”, he stated.

The mayor of Porto Alegre, Sebastião Melo (MDB), highlighted the need to accelerate the arrival of resources to municipalities, which will need to rebuild structures destroyed by the floods. The mayor recalled that there is a lack of equipment to face a tragedy of this scale.

“There is a lack of boats in the city, there is a lack of boats in the city, there is a lack of vests in the city, I’m talking about my city, but this extends to many dozens of municipalities and this cannot wait, it has to be today, it has to be now” , he stated.

“But we also have to worry about supply, 70% of the city is without water. The tanker trucks are almost out of diesel, oxygen is running out for Rio Grande and our city as well. We need to focus on saving lives first”, Melo added.