Longo, who has dual citizenship, states that, if elected in Brazil, he will resign from his position in Italy.
The Regional Electoral Prosecutor's Office in São Paulo questioned, this Monday (20), the candidacy of Fausto Longo, who is trying to be elected as a federal deputy for the MDB despite being a senator in the Italian Parliament for five years.
The Superior Electoral Court (TSE) states that there are no prohibitions in the law for this type of case.
“Our thesis is not about effective occupation of a position. He chose, when running there, to be a representative of the Italian people. There is a conflict of interest in now being a representative of the Brazilian people”, says Luiz Carlos dos Santos Gonçalves, regional electoral attorney who signed the challenge.
“As there is no express prohibition, this is a reading, an interpretation that we made of the Constitution and we are presenting it to the Judiciary. In our opinion, he cannot apply”, adds Gonçalves.
At 66 years old, the emedebista, born in Amparo (SP), has been a member of the party of the President of the Republic, Michel Temer, since he was 18 years old. Longo has a degree in architecture and urbanism, has experience at Fiesp (Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo) and served as Secretary of Tourism in Piracicaba (SP) from 1977 to 1982.
In 2013, Longo was elected senator in the European country by “Alleanza Italia Bene Comune”, formed by the parties PD (Democratic Party), PSI (Italian Socialist Party) and SEL (Sinistra, Ecologia and Libertá), having been re-elected in March 2018 .
“I am not abandoning my greatest purpose, which is to defend the interests of the Brazilian population, whether they are of Italian descent or not, and fight for human dignity”, says Longo.
For Longo, his time in the Italian Parliament gave him more opportunities to help the population of his home country.
“I am not giving up or despising the honorable position I have achieved, but at this moment, I would like to lend the knowledge that Italy has given me,” he says.
In an interview with Gazeta de Piracicaba in February, Longo, who likes to present himself as an “Italian-countryman”, stated that he presented 1.580 amendments to the Italian Parliament, with 600 approved, in addition to drafting and presenting 15 bills.
Longo also states that he articulated alliances between Italian and Brazilian institutions for the mutual development of the regions.
By Folha de São Paulo
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