President appoints close allies to Justice Ministry and Federal Police
President Jair Bolsonaro decided to appoint the secretary-general of the Presidency, Minister Jorge Oliveira, to replace former Operation Car Wash Judge Sergio Moro atop the Justice and Public Security Ministry.
With this decision, Mr. Bolsonaro disregarded recommendation from the military group of the government.
The Strategic Affairs secretary, Admiral Flávio Augusto Viana Rocha, is likely to take over Mr. Oliveira's role and become the fourth military member to occupy a cabinet role at the Planalto Palace, where the closest ministers of the president are located. Meanwhile, the current Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin) chief, Alexandre Ramagem, will become the new director-general of the Federal Police, overseen by the Justice Ministry. Mr. Ramagem is close to Rio de Janeiro Councilman Carlos Bolsonaro (Republicans), one of the president's sons, and will report to Mr. Oliveira.
The Federal Gazette must publish the appointments to make them official, but they were being confirmed on Sunday by close aides. Most of Mr. Moro's team has tendered its resignation, including Managing Secretary Luiz Pontel de Souza.
Mr. Pontel de Souza was asked to stay on Mr. Oliveira's team, but declined while assuring he would help in a professional and transparent handover. National Penitentiary Department (Depen) Director Fabiano Bordignon and National Consumer Secretariat head Luciano Timm are also leaving.
Mr. Bolsonaro met on Saturday at official residence Alvorada Palace with Messrs. Oliveira, Ramagem and Institutional Security Office (GSI) Minister Augusto Heleno, who oversees the Abin. Following recommendations from military ministers, with support from Mr. Oliveira himself, the group considered other names for the Justice role. Among them were Federal Attorney-General André Luiz Mendonça; former São Paulo Court of Justice chief Ivan Sartori; and Superior Labor Court Chief Justice Yves Gandra Martins Filho.
Mr. Oliveira himself resisted the appointment because of his close ties to the Bolsonaro family. He feared lending support to Mr. Moro's accusations that the president wants to control the Federal Police to gain access to confidential intelligence reports.
"Jorginho," as the president likes to call the aide, started working with Mr. Bosonaro 17 years ago, when the current president was still a federal deputy, continuing the friendship enjoyed by his father, who spent 29 years as an aide and advisor of Mr. Bolsonaro.
Mr. Oliveira's official...
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