Just in:
Sharjah Chamber Breaks Ground on Final Expansion with New HQ Pact // TUMI Hosts Global Launch Event in Singapore to Unveil Women’s Asra Collection and Announce Global Ambassador, Mun Ka Young // U.S. Compliance Takes Center Stage at OKX Following Industry Jitters // Konica Minolta is named ASEAN 2023 Market Leader in Colour Light and Mid Digital Production Printers // German Job Market Resilience Bodes Well for Economic Recovery // No running of govt from jail, says Delhi Lt Governor // Sharpening the Focus: Sharjah Health Department Refines Evaluation Criteria for “Healthy Schools Programme” // Arvind Kejriwal Was Used By BJP In 2011 Movement To Take On The Congress // Lisboeta Macau’s world first LINE FRIENDS PRESENTS CASA DE AMIGO and BROWN & FRIENDS CAFE & BISTRO has officially opened // Ajman Celebrates Conclusion of Ramadan Activities with Grand Ceremony // US reiterates concern over Kejriwal arrest, Cong accounts // New Nylon Constant Torque Hinge From Southco Provides Position Control In A Compact Package // French Leaders Gather for Interfaith Iftar Dinner // Infineon and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering jointly develop ship electrification technology // Global Audience to Witness Thrill of Dubai World Cup // AIA Hong Kong Wins More Than 20 Accolades at MPF Ratings MPF Awards, BENCHMARK MPF of The Year Awards and Bloomberg Businessweek Top Fund Awards // Following the Money Trail: US and UK Investigate $20 Billion in USDT Transfers Tied to Sanctioned Russian Exchange // Samsung Partners National Heritage Board to Bring a Slice of Singapore’s Cultural Heritage to Samsung The Frame TV // Ingdan Announces 2023 Annual Results // Andertoons by Mark Anderson for Thu, 28 Mar 2024 //
HomeFT SelectLula accused of influence peddling in fighter deal

Lula accused of influence peddling in fighter deal

eec4e812 b027 11e6 9c37 5787335499a0

December 10, 2016

ADVERTISEMENT

Former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and one of his sons have been accused by prosecutors of influence peddling and other crimes in relation to a landmark $4.5bn Saab Gripen fighter jet deal in Latin America’s largest country. 

Prosecutors in Brasília accused Mr Lula da Silva’s son, Luís Cláudio Lula da Silva, of receiving nearly R$2.6m in payments from a consultancy for his father’s promise to intervene to help persuade the government to buy the 36 Gripen fighters in 2013 and for their promised intervention in a separate matter. 

“Technical arguments [in favour of the jets] . . . became mere details compared with the importance of claimed proximity and friendship with federal public agents,” the public prosecutors’ office said in a statement on the case. 

Mr Lula da Silva’s lawyers immediately rejected the accusations as media grandstanding and said neither the former president nor his son knew anything about the fighter deal. 

They said the payments to the former president’s son from the consultancy were for work that enabled the realisation of American football competitions in Brazil. They did not elaborate. 

Saab said it did not want to comment on the matter given that the public prosecutors had made no accusations against the company or any of its employees. 

The contract was seen as a victory for the Swedish company, which defeated competition from the Rafale of France’s Dassault and the F/A-18 Super Hornet of Boeing of the US to win the Brazilian competition to revamp its fighter fleet. 

The accusations are the latest against the former president, the key figure in the country’s former ruling Workers’ party, amid claims that he also accepted favours from construction companies in exchange for contracts at Petrobras, the state-owned oil company. 

Technical arguments [in favour of the jets] . . . became mere details compared with the importance of claimed proximity and friendship with federal public agents

His lawyers have responded that he is the victim of a scheme to smear his name that his political supporters argue is aimed at preventing him from standing in presidential elections in 2018. 

In Friday’s indictment, prosecutors accused Mr Lula da Silva of influence trafficking, money laundering and organised crime in relation to the Saab deal and the extension of tax benefits for MMC and Caoa, the Brazilian companies that sell Mitsubishi and Hyundai vehicles in the country. 

The prosecutors said that between 2013 and 2015, Mr Lula da Silva “implemented a scheme in which he sold the promise that he could interfere in government decisions to benefit the companies MMC, Caoa Group and Saab”. 

This promise was allegedly made through a lobbyist consultancy Marcondes e Mautoni Empreendimentos e Diplomacia (M&M), run by Mauro Marcondes and Cristina Mautoni, whose clients included Saab and the two automotive companies. The pair were also named in the indictment alongside Mr Lula da Silva and his son. 

A spokesperson for Caoa said the company had no immediate comment as neither it nor its employees were among those accused in the indictment.

MMC declined to comment. Neither the company nor its employees were among those accused.

The prosecutors said the idea of the scheme was that Mr Lula da Silva could use his influence with “a public agent” who had the power to take decisions affecting the interests of the companies — then-president Dilma Rousseff. 

But they said the investigation had uncovered no evidence that Ms Rousseff participated in the alleged scheme or was aware of it. 

The prosecutors said that between 2011 and 2015, Saab paid M&M €1.84m and €744,000. 

“The explication for the . . . payments is, according to investigators, the fact that the lobbyists Mauro and Cristina had convinced the Swedes that they [the lobbyists] were close to the former president and could count on his influence with the government to ensure victory in the contest [for the fighters],” the public prosecutors’ statement said. 

Via FT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT
Just in:
New Nylon Constant Torque Hinge From Southco Provides Position Control In A Compact Package // Global Audience to Witness Thrill of Dubai World Cup // Ajman Celebrates Conclusion of Ramadan Activities with Grand Ceremony // Emirates Post Speeds Up Deliveries for GCC with Special Day // Konica Minolta is named ASEAN 2023 Market Leader in Colour Light and Mid Digital Production Printers // Arvind Kejriwal Was Used By BJP In 2011 Movement To Take On The Congress // Universal Language for Healthcare: General Authority Embraces Global Coding System // Sharjah Chamber Breaks Ground on Final Expansion with New HQ Pact // French Leaders Gather for Interfaith Iftar Dinner // CABSAT 2024 Ushers in 30 Years of Media Innovation // Emirati Aid Reaches Ukraine as Food Shortages Bite // Infineon and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering jointly develop ship electrification technology // Sunshine’s Debut Features Leave Tech World Scratching Its Head // Hope for Respite as UAE Endorses UN Plea for Gaza Truce // Melco Style Presents “SANRIO CHARACTERS STUDIO CITY CARNIVAL” – Explore a SANRIO World of Unlimited Love and Cuteness // Following the Money Trail: US and UK Investigate $20 Billion in USDT Transfers Tied to Sanctioned Russian Exchange // Sharpening the Focus: Sharjah Health Department Refines Evaluation Criteria for “Healthy Schools Programme” // Andertoons by Mark Anderson for Thu, 28 Mar 2024 // No running of govt from jail, says Delhi Lt Governor // U.S. Compliance Takes Center Stage at OKX Following Industry Jitters //