After a month since the establishment of the so-called Pandemic CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry), you've probably heard a lot about it. There have been several hearings, people interviewed, and new information revealed about the Federal Government's handling of the pandemic. But tell us: do you really know what a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry is? How does it work, and what powers does it have?
According to political scientist and IDP professor Rafael Silveira, a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) is one of the main instruments the Legislative Branch has to oversee the actions of the Executive Branch, through the investigation of facts on any topic that warrants an investigation of accountability, whether of actors from the private or public sector. "The CPI can verify actions or lack thereof by the government, and can investigate allegations of corruption and irregularities," says the professor.
According to the legislation, the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry has investigative powers similar to those of a judicial authority. "This means that the CPI investigates, inquires, and gathers evidence. That is the commission's role," explains IDP professor João Trindade, who is also a legislative consultant for the Senate and a lawyer.
a determined fact
The first thing to make clear is that CPIs only investigate specific factswhich specify the commission's objective. "That is, when there is something specific to be investigated. A matter of a public nature that deserves the political attention of the deputies or senators," explains João. This means, for example, that it is not possible to form a commission to investigate a broad topic, such as corruption in general, but it is possible in specific cases where there is suspicion of corruption.
"This serves both a formal purpose, to have legal backing, and to facilitate the work of the parliamentarians themselves in conducting the investigations," points out Rafael Silveira.
Why and what is the purpose of a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry?
Historically, commissions of this type were created to oversee the accounts of kingdoms, as Professor João Trindade from IDP states: “The primary function of Parliament, since the Late Middle Ages, was to oversee the accounts of the king, of the Executive Branch. And this is also done today through Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry,” explains the professor.
Did you know that several historical events, or events of great importance and impact, originated from a Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry?
The impeachment of President Fernando Collor in 1992, for example, was a consequence of investigations carried out by the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into PC Farias, who had been treasurer in Collor's presidential campaign and acted as an intermediary between the business community and the government.
The Budget CPI, between 1993 and 1994, for example, "caused a very strong impact on the way the budget is made in Brazil, including the way the Joint Budget Committee works as we know it today," points out Rafael Silveira.
Back in 2005, the Postal Service Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI dos Correios) was investigating bribery payments within the postal service and ended up uncovering a scheme to buy votes from parliamentarians, which became known as... monthly allowance“, quotes Professor João Trindade.
The investigation by the Postal Service Parliamentary Inquiry Commission, incidentally, had several political repercussions during President Lula's administration. "The Lula government survived the CPI, but it was a major clash during that period, and the reports resulted in many legislative proposals," comments Rafael Silveira.
More recently, the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into Violence Against Women in the Federal Senate investigated the omission of public authorities in situations involving the application of the Maria da Penha Law in 2012, examining the fight against violence against women in all states of Brazil.
As Professor João Trindade explains, “the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry into Violence Against Women encountered a lack of data on femicide in the country, simply because all femicides in Brazil were considered aggravated homicides. The Commission proposed the specific classification of the crime of femicide and, from then on, we began to have reliable statistics on the incidence of this crime in Brazilian law.”
However, the professors emphasize that not all Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry reach conclusions of great impact or even conclude their work. "Most don't gain as much prominence as we imagine," explains Rafael.
Pandemic CPI
In the case of the Pandemic CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry), the purpose is to investigate the actions and omissions of the Federal Government in addressing the Covid-19 pandemic, especially the worsening of the health crisis in Amazonas in January of this year, when there was a shortage of oxygen in the city of Manaus.
It also seeks to uncover possible irregularities in contracts, bid rigging, overpricing, misappropriation of public funds, signing of contracts with shell companies for the provision of generic or fictitious services, among other illegal activities, having used resources from the Federal Government for this purpose. In addition, it aims to investigate other actions or omissions committed by governments at the federal, state, and municipal levels during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Professor Rafael Silveira, the Pandemic CPI (Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry) ends up gaining a much larger dimension than any other, "given the major problems that our society has faced and the weak, feeble, irresponsible, poorly articulated and poorly managed way in which the State has dealt with the pandemic," he opines.
With the number of deaths from Covid-19 already exceeding 460,It is absolutely essential that the National Congress fulfill its oversight role. "And investigate the management of the pandemic at the federal level, since it is a Congressional Inquiry Commission, but, regarding the transfer of federal funds, states and municipalities should also be investigated," emphasizes João Trindade.
The Pandemic CPI represents a crucial moment in the fight against COVID-19 in Brazil. Therefore, the professor believes that "it is especially important for the State itself to reorganize and take responsibility for better guiding the solution to this problem that we are still facing," concludes Professor Rafael Silveira.
