MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Bolsonaro lawsuit against Lula dismissed

Lula (R) cannot be targeted for his statements as president, the judge ruled

A court in Brasilia on Tuesday rejected a lawsuit filed by former President Jair Bolsonaro and his wife Michelle, demanding that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva retract his statements that furniture was missing from the Alvorada Palace when he returned there last January. The Bolsonaros had also requested R$20,000 (US$3,953) in damages.

In her ruling, Judge Gláucia Barbosa Rizzo da Silva argued that Lula could not be held responsible because the statements were made while he was president and related to furniture from the head of state's residence, which is public property. “Therefore, considering that the alleged practice of the act concerns public property and that this circumstance links the defendant's statements to the exercise of his office, I ex officio recognize his passive illegitimacy,” the magistrate noted in her rationale, insisting that the responsibility for any damage caused lied with the Union and not with Lula personally.

Therefore, any legal action should be directed against the state, said Judge Barbosa, who also pointed out that the lawsuit filed by the Bolsonaros was not for the Special Civil Courts to decide.

The Bolsonaros' legal team said they would appeal the decision to their lawsuit, filed on March 22, seeking a “pedagogical measure.” They also said the damages would be donated to charity.

They also wanted Lula to retract his statement “in the same proportion as the damage he caused,” which included an official press conference at the Alvorada Palace, with a special focus on “the GloboNews media outlet and the federal government's official communication channels.”

First Lady Janja da Silva gave an exclusive interview to Globo to show the state in which the Alvorada Palace was found after the Bolsonaro years. The 261 items said to be missing were found in other parts of the building over the next ten months.

In the absence of this furniture, the federal government spent R$ 26.8 million (US$ 5.3 million) on renovations, it was reported.