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| Keeping Power in the Family - Nepotism at Work |
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| 10 January 2001 | |
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by John Fitzpatrick With President George W. Bush taking office in the footsteps of his father, and Hillary Clinton entering the Senate for what may be a short stay before returning to the White House as the first female President, it seems that keeping politics in the family is becoming more common in the U.S. However, it will be some time before American politics becomes as much a family affair as it is in Brazil. At the local level, it is quite common for mayors and town councillors to abuse their powers of patronage to employ hordes of relatives. These are often appointed to non-existent jobs, which merely require the relative to do nothing more strenuous than pick up a monthly paycheck. At national level family connections are also important and there are a number of political dynasties. The rewards at this level are much bigger, although some more genuine “work” is required. After all, noblesse oblige. In theory there should be nothing wrong with a family tradition of serving the nation in politics, but in places like Brazil, where democracy does not have strong roots, the family name can eventually become more important than the individual. We have a perfect example of this at the moment. At the end of this month President Fernando Henrique Cardoso is expected to alter his ministerial team. One minister who is almost certain to remain is José Sarney Filho who is in charge of the environment, and is also son of former President José Sarney. Cardoso does not want to upset Sarney the elder, who is still an influential political figure and would like to be the next President of the Senate. This seems increasingly unlikely as Sarney the elder wants to be approved by consensus, and not involve himself in a messy dispute with the favorite candidate Jader Barbalho (PMDB) who has the support of Cardoso's PSDB. Even though Sarney junior is a member of the PFL, while his father is from the PMDB, Cardoso knows that blood is thicker than water and removing the lad will upset the dad. Now, young Sarney has not done a bad job as Environment Minister, but neither has he made his mark. Compared with Health Minister José Serra, or Education Minister Paulo Renato Souza, he is practically invisible. But considering the appalling worldwide image Brazil has as custodian of the world's largest rain forest, a more heavyweight, high profile, internationally-minded environment minister would be a great asset. Instead, this important position has become one of the jobs for the boys. Roseanna Sarney – Daughter to Follow Father as President? Ex-President Sarney also has a daughter in politics – the beautiful, photogenic Roseanna, who is governor of Maranhão and also a PFL member. Roseanna is being tipped as Brazil's first woman president despite a history of health problems. One cannot help but wonder whether President Roseanna would keep her brother as a minister in any government she formed. A pointless speculation? Perhaps, but it would not need to be raised if this kind of incestuous situation did not exist. The only other example of family favorites in Cardoso's cabinet is Labour Minister Francisco Oswaldo Neves Dornelles, who is a nephew of Tancredo Neves, the first democratically-elected President after the end of military rule in the mid-eighties. Neves' heritage stretches long and one of his grandsons, Aécio Neves, is also standing for the chairmanship of the Lower House. Collor Clan in Alagoas... Tancredo Neves died in 1985 before taking office and was replaced by his deputy, none other than José Sarney. Sarney's elected successor, Fernando Collor de Mello, was another example of someone who had politics in his blood. Collor comes from Alagoas, a Northeastern state which is notorious for violence and political corruption. Collor's father was a senator who once opened fire on another politician on the Senate floor, but missed and killed the wrong person. Collor betrayed the Brazilian electorate following revelations of corruption made in 1992 by his own brother, Pedro, and was impeached. As part of the punishment he was temporarily banned from standing for political office but this period is ending and there is no doubt that Collor would be elected if he stood in Alagoas state, where the name is revered. Despite this, happy families is not necessarily the name of the game in Alagoas, where domestic disputes can have serious consequences. For example, just as Collor's brother – who later died of cancer – started his downfall, it has been alleged that the brother of Collor's main adviser, P.C. Farias, was involved in his murder. P.C. Farias was found shot dead in a motel bed alongside his girlfriend in 1996. Police claimed the girl killed her lover in a fit of passion and then shot herself, a version universally treated with the contempt which it is due. Magalhães Clan in Bahia... One political boss who must envy Sarney (and George Bush senior) is Antonio Carlos Magalhães, current Senate president. ACM, as he is commonly known, has never been President of Brazil although he often acts as if he were. He had realistic hopes that his son, Luis Eduardo Magalhães, would have been a presidential candidate in the 2002 election. Magalhães junior died of a heart attack while in his early 40's, leaving a big gap in the senior ranks of the parties which form the federal government. Whereas Sarney junior has made little impression, Luis Eduardo Magalhães was impressive - less blustering and confrontational than his cantankerous father, but a successful leader of the Lower House. However, once again his rise was due to nepotism. ACM has been running his home state of Bahia as a personal fief for decades, and his son was the appointed crown prince. Had Luis Eduardo lived, he would almost certainly have been elected governor of Bahia and used his terms of office to prepare for the presidency. There is still hope for ACM though: his grandson, also called Luis Eduardo, is already being groomed for political office. Mr and Mrs Suplicy in São Paulo... Keeping it in the family extends to husbands and wives. The Bill and Hillary of Brazilian politics at the moment are Marta Suplicy, the newly-elected glamorous mayor of São Paulo and her husband, Senator Eduardo Suplicy, both from the left-wing PT. Eduardo Suplicy has already said he wants to be the the PT's presidential candidate next year. This is unlikely to happen, but if Marta Suplicy does a good job of running Brazil's biggest city, perhaps she might be a possible candidate in years to come. Suplicy, incidentally, is a member of one of Brazil's richest and most influential families, the Matarazzos. President Cardoso's communications secretary is Andrea Matarazzo. Another husband-and-wife team are Espiridião and Angela Amin, respectively Governor of the state of Santa Catarina and Mayor of the state capital, Florianópolis. Ciro Gomes, a possible presidential candidate, has also played the family card, although with a twist. The former finance minister and governor of the northeastern state of Ceará supported his ex-wife, Patricia, who tried and failed to become mayor of Fortaleza – the state capital – in last October's municipal elections. Many of these politicians come from families which have built up fortunes from their businesses. Much of Brazilian business is still in family hands, and there are many connections between the world of business and politics. But that can wait for another article… (c) John Fitzpatrick 2001 |
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