Motta Says Messages Show No Favoritism as Leaks Highlight Vorcaro Ties

Motta Says Messages Show No Favoritism as Leaks Highlight Vorcaro Ties
Messages reportedly recovered by the Federal Police have sharpened scrutiny of Chamber President Hugo Motta’s relationship with Daniel Vorcaro, the former owner of Banco Master. Accounts of the exchanges describe social invitations, requests for event tickets, calls and discussions touching on a property transaction financed by the bank.

The reporting portrays the contact as extending beyond a casual acquaintance. Among the messages cited, Vorcaro wrote that he wished he were “in Monaco with you,” while Motta reportedly sought four tickets for a Carnival box and later invited the banker to a gathering apparently linked to Senate President Davi Alcolumbre. The same material points to a loan of at least 22 million reais from Banco Master to a company owned by Motta’s sister-in-law, used in a planned real-estate development in João Pessoa.

A separate account says messages examined by police also refer to a possible partnership in the land deal and show Vorcaro approaching Motta about legislation before Congress, including a carbon-market proposal. It says Motta himself requested the release of credit for his sister-in-law’s company, in a transaction completed in 2024, before he became Chamber president.

Motta rejects the suggestion that proximity or dialogue amounted to favoritism. He said he had maintained contact with “diverse segments of the business community and representatives of Brazilian society” throughout four terms in Congress, and insisted that “there is no illegality portrayed in the published dialogues.” He has also said the private loan was agreed before later public revelations and investigations involving Master and Vorcaro, and that investigators should determine any responsibility.

The contrast is therefore between reports emphasizing the breadth of the relationship and Motta’s contention that the exchanges lack evidence of official intervention. Commentator Paulo Figueiredo reacted to a report of at least 100 calls and 19 meetings with the phrase, “The system is tough, partner.”

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