Bolsonarist ignores commitment to name allies in RJ

Igor Melo and Giuliana Dal Piva

Bolsonarista Anderson Moraes (PL-RJ), Minister of Science and Technology in Claudio Castro’s government, ignored the compliance opinion to gain political allies in two key scientific research positions in Rio.

Moraes sent to the Secretariat of the Civic House on Friday (25), at 12:39 p.m., the musical chairs in charge of Faetec (Foundation for the Support of the Technical School of Rio de Janeiro) and Faperj (Foundation for the Support of Research in the State of Rio de Janeiro).

Through this maneuver, Caroline Alves da Costa, who currently holds the presidency of Faetec, will take charge of Faperj. An hour earlier, the state government’s compliance opinion had objected to her name as head of the entity.

Vaitek, in turn, will be under the leadership of Bolsonarista Alexandre Valle, the former education minister in Castro’s government who was defeated in the dispute for mayor of Itaguay at the beginning of the month.

Faetec is responsible for technical education in the state of Rio and has a budget of about R$ 1 billion scheduled for 2025. Therefore, it is considered one of the crown jewels among state bodies.

Faperj is the institution that promotes scientific research in the state, mainly supporting research projects at Uerj (State University of Rio de Janeiro) and Uenf (State University of Norte Fluminense). The agency expects revenues of more than R$641 million in 2025.

Aliada failed to comply

The compliance opinion denying Caroline’s appointment to lead Faberge was prepared by attorney Victor Travancas, who serves as undersecretary in the office of Claudio Castro. The document was signed at 11:33 a.m., just over an hour before Moraes made the changes to the Civic House official.

According to Travancas’s opinion, “An analysis of the presidential candidate’s CV reveals that he does not have a doctorate, which, according to the standards in academic circles, undermines his ability to perform tasks that require artistic and scientific depth. The lack of this title can be interpreted as an indication of a weak ability to conduct complex research projects, as well as ensure integrity and excellence in the initiatives promoted by the Fund.

Accordingly, Travancas objected to the appointment: “Out of respect for the principles of compliance and the continuous search for excellence in public service, it is recommended that the appointment in question be reconsidered. Adopting strict criteria when selecting the President of FAPERJ not only enhances the credibility of the institution, but is also in line with the strategic interests of the country, and fosters a strong and respected research environment, capable of promoting innovation and scientific development in Rio Jan.

A veto name involved in secret Org papers

Caroline Alves da Costa was sponsored for the presidency of Viitec by another Bolsonarista with significant influence in state government: State Rep. Dr. Serginho (PL-RJ), Castro’s former leader in the Legislative Assembly and elected mayor of Cabo Frio in the Lakes. region.

Dr. Serginio was Minister of Science and Technology during most of the Castro administration, and even after leaving office, he retained significant influence in the region.

A report from the UOL portal showed, in 2022, that 45 election telegrams linked to Dr. Serginho and federal representative Soraya Santos (PL-RJ), who doubled with him in the 2022 elections, were employed in a project in which secret papers were carried out. In partnership between Uerj and Faetec. In total, contractors – many of them ghost employees – received more than R$2.3 million in grants on the eve of the election period.

Many of them admitted that they were not even aware of their connection to this mentoring project.
Following the complaints, which also included fracking practices by contractors, Jörg decided to close the project in December 2022.

However, a few months later, Caroline Alves da Costa sent a letter to the rectory of Jorge to provide an additional sum of R$44 million so that the suspected corruption project could be resumed. She herself received resources from the secret paper: in all, she received a total of R$52,000 in just four months of her participation in the project.

At that time, she had not yet been hired by Faetec. Caroline served as Vice-President of the Cecierj Foundation, another body linked to the Secretariat of Science and Technology, focused on distance higher education.

The secretary is close to the Bolsonaro family

Moraes is a Bolsonari and has become closer to the clan in recent years. He was the author of projects against mandatory Covid-19 vaccination and in favor of Org extinction.

He has kept the name of Rogeria Bolsonaro, the mother of Flavio, Carlos and Eduardo Bolsonaro, in his cabinet. Moraes was also the main campaigner in Ruggiero’s failed attempt to return to politics, as a candidate for councilor in Rio de Janeiro in 2020.

In addition to Rogeria, he also appointed influencer Vanessa Navarro, who was appointed by the Federal Police as a member of the government of hate.

Science-related entities are protesting the changes

Behind the scenes, Bolsonaro’s supporters justify the change in the presidency of Faberge (Rio de Janeiro’s state research support foundation) by saying that it will be necessary to open a “black box” to investigate the foundation’s expenses. This change is being criticized by several parties in the field of scientific research.

petition It was created by people associated with the academic community against the changes, and already has more than 23.1 thousand signatures. The campaign defends Professor Gerson Lima’s continued chairmanship of Faberge.

The Brazilian Academy of Sciences (ABC) and the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Sciences (SBPC) published a statement outlining their concern about the change and sent it to the governor. The National Academy of Medicine, the deans of the state’s public universities, the Federation of Societies of Experimental Biology, the Brazilian Society of Virology and the Serrabelheira Institute also took a position.