UEA professors union supports Zé Ricardo’s name for Suframa superintendence

Priscilla Peixoto – From Cenarium Magazine

MANAUS – The Union of Teachers of the State University of Amazonas (Sind-UEA) declared support for the name of former federal deputy and economist José Ricardo (PT-AM) for the post of holder of the Superintendence of the Manaus Free Trade Zone (Suframa). Through a note disseminated this Friday, 10, the entity highlights that Zé Ricardo “has extensive experience in the political struggle in defense of the Free Trade Zone and the workers, being the most strategic name to occupy the vacancy of the federal agency.

“First of all, Zé Ricardo knows the successful model of the Manaus Free Trade Zone. Besides being an economist and having a bachelor’s degree in Law, he has already been a university professor of economics and chaired the Regional Council of Economics of Amazonas (Corecon-AM), an entity that has also declared its support for his name. In addition, he has a post-graduate degree in business financial management and has been providing economic consulting services to factories in the Industrial Complex since 1989”, reads an excerpt from the note.

Political difference

According to the secretary of Communication and member of the board of directors of Sind-UEA, Ceane Simões, the note of support to José Ricardo to superintendency of Suframa meets a demand of the union base that understands that, besides the technical prerogatives, the former deputy presents special conditions from the political point of view.

“Our understanding is that this position should be occupied by someone like him, by the qualities pointed out and that are notorious and undeniable, and also by the fact that we saw ourselves in a very weakened position, last year, especially with the decrees of the then Bolsonaro Government that weakened a lot the comparative advantages of the ZFM, and this affects, directly, the very existence of the university [UEA],” states Ceane which complements:

“We were left in a situation, as a public university maintained with resources coming from this sector of state industry, in a position of great vulnerability, which made us, obviously, mobilize the base, hold protests, enter a campaign for the defense of our university. In addition, Zé Ricardo has always shown, with great quality, as a deputy, to be a very active politician in the field of education, attentive to the demands of public education and, therefore, he deserves our full support and consideration in this endeavor,” explains the secretary.

Network of support

In the text, the union recalls the conquest of federal resources, by the then federal deputy, in which a part was allocated to education between the years 2020 and 2023. “(…) Between 2020 and 2023, during his mandate as a federal deputy, he conquered more than R$ 176 million in federal resources for Amazonas. Of the total, almost half (R$ 99.7 million) was destined for education, an area he has always shown to have an appreciation for. It is no coincidence that he received support to be Suframa’s chief from the Federal Education Institutions (Ifes) of Acre, Amazonas, Amapá, Rondônia and Roraima, as well as from the sector’s unions”, he points out.

In December 2022, the Amazonas Regional Council of Economics (Corecon-AM) unanimously approved a manifestation called “open letter” to support the name of José Ricardo, economist, to head the Superintendence of the Manaus Free Trade Zone (Suframa).

At the time, the network of support for the former lawmaker extended to education, agriculture, and technology professionals. Members of the various sectors understand that José Ricardo “has a technical and political profile and knowledge about the Manaus Free Trade Zone model”.

Read also: Economic professionals, institutes and unions support José Ricardo’s name for superintendent of the MFTz

Amazon bench

In contrast to the entities that suggest Zé Ricardo as superintendent of Suframa, the bench of parliamentarians of the State of Amazonas, in Congress, indicated the former federal deputy Bosco Saraiva (PSD) to occupy the post. The information was given firsthand to the program Boa Noite, Amazônia, of Rede Onda Digital, on March 1st. The Amazonian bench is composed of eight federal deputies and three senators.

Suframa, which has not held the post for almost two months, has become the target of a silent dispute between the PSD, of Senator Omar Aziz, and the PT, of Sinésio Campos. Even being José Ricardo’s one of the most quoted names to assume the autarchy, up to the moment, the political force of senator Omar Aziz prevails, who has shown himself to be more articulate with the State’s bench in the National Congress.

Currently, who is in charge, on an interim basis, is Marcelo Pereira, a career employee of the local authority. He has already responded temporarily to the agency in December last year. At the time, the then superintendent Algacir Polsin, a military appointee of former president Jair Bolsonaro, appointed him executive assistant superintendent.

Marcelo Pereira replaces Ana Maria Souza, also a career civil servant and economist, who was in charge of the institution on an interim basis until February 16. Ana Maria was announced in January, in the first weeks of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s government.

Technical x political

In an interview to CENARIUM MAGAZINE, in February this year, the acting superintendent, Marcelo Pereira, said that the portfolio is strategic to the federal government, and that Lula is in a dilemma as to the choice of a technical or political name.

“We can not deny that the Superintendence of the MFTz is strategic, politically, despite being very technical. The federal government, it is, at this moment, acting on this decision to bring a political name or keep a technical name. So, there is this dilemma within the federal government”, Marcelo pointed out.

The Industrial Pole of Manaus (PIM) has, approximately, 500 high-tech industries, generating more than half a million jobs, direct and indirect, mainly, in the electro-electronic, computer goods, and two-wheeled segments.

Read the note in full: