JBS Parliamentary Inquiry Commission
The JBS Parliamentary Inquiry Commission, better known as JBS CPI or JBS CPMI, is a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission created on September 5, 2017, with the purpose of investigating alleged irregularities committed by the J&F group, which controls the JBS meatpacking company, in relation to loans from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) between the years 2007 and 2016, as well as the plea bargain agreement made by the group with the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office. Rapporteur On September 12, 2017, Deputy Carlos Marun (PMDB-MS) was chosen as the rapporteur of the Joint Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPMI) established to investigate irregularities involving the JBS group and the J&F holding in operations with the BNDES, and Ronaldo Caiado (DEM-GO) was elected as the Vice President of the Joint CPI. Reactions The appointment of Marun as rapporteur provoked reactions from other lawmakers. Senator Ricardo Ferraço requested to be removed from the commission, justifying that he did not want to participate in what he considered "revenge and back-and-forth". The rapporteur Marun is also accused of administrative misconduct for embezzling 16.6 million reais. Marun, who informed the CPI about the case, denies the allegations. Summonses On September 21, 2017, the CPI approved the summoning of former Attorney General Rodrigo Janot, former prosecutor Marcelo Miller, and prosecutor Ângelo Goulart Villela. The CPI also approved the summoning of brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista, the controllers of the J&F group, owner of JBS, as well as executives Ricardo Saud, Valdir Aparecido Boni, Francisco Assis e Silva, Florisvaldo Caetano de Oliveira, Fábio Chilo, and Demilton Antônio de Castro, former BNDES president Luciano Coutinho, and JBS lawyer Willer Tomaz de Souza. Support One of the supporters of the CPI, rapporteur Carlos Marun, said, "This CPI is not mine, it's not yours, it's not Deputy João Gualberto's or Senator Ronaldo Caiado's. It didn't come out of nowhere. A few months ago, Brazil woke up surprised by the information that Joesley revealed that campaign contributions were bribes." Marun also said that "even as a confessed defendant, perhaps one of the greatest offenders in Brazilian history, he had received eternal forgiveness." The rapporteur said that the CPI "does authorize the investigation of the circumstances of this agreement." Criticisms Approximately one-third of the current members of the Joint CPI receive funding from JBS. In total, about 4 million reais were donated to the campaigns of 15 out of the 49 parliamentarians who are part of the commission. The choice of the rapporteur caused Ricardo Ferraço and Otto Alencar to withdraw from the commission. According to Deputy Ivan Valente from PSOL, the number of lawmakers funded by JBS compromises the work of the commission. Valente stated, "Serious members of the CPI should request the recusal of those who are directly connected to receiving funds from JBS." Senator Randolfe Rodrigues argued that the Joint Parliamentary Inquiry Commission created to investigate JBS aims to "corner" the independence of the Judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office. Randolfe filed a writ of mandamus with the Supreme Federal Court requesting the