The document argues that mass demonstrations in Brazil show deep dissatisfaction with the country's serious economic, political, and social problems under successive governments. It attributes responsibility to the PSDB and PT parties for adopting neoliberal policies that have hurt Brazil's competitiveness and led to issues like high taxes, debt, and corruption. The document calls for a new constituent assembly excluding current politicians to enact political reforms and establish a new economic and social order in Brazil.

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IN DEFENSE OF A NEW CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY FOR OVERCOMING
THE CURRENT CRISIS IN BRAZIL
Fernando Alcoforado *
The mass demonstrations that took place today (17/06/2013) in several cities in Brazil
show that there is deep dissatisfaction not only against the increase of tariffs for
transportation tickets, but especially against the serious economic, political and social
situation prevailing in Brazil . The dissatisfaction of the population lies in the economic
and political-institutional. The protest against the increase in bus fares was only the
spark that led to the popular explosion against the excesses committed by those in
power in Brazil.
It should be noted that the serious economic, political and social situation prevailing in
Brazil is of the responsibility of the PSDB, which under Cardoso introduced the
neoliberal economic model, and PT, during which governments Lula and Dilma
Rousseff, gave continuity. This responsibility of the PSDB and the PT is also
manifested in the violent police repression of mass movements underway in Brazil, with
the PT herein counting on the support of allied parties such as the PMDB.
The dissatisfaction of the population in the economic results from the fact the FHC,
Lula and Rousseff governments have contributed to the adoption of neoliberal economic
policies responsible for the low productivity of Brazil, losing its competitiveness in the
world market, deindustrialization of the country, very high load tax, an overvalued
exchange rate, insufficient investment, lack of skilled labor, bottlenecks in transport
infrastructure (roads, ports and airports) and low economic growth. This lamentable
situation is leading Brazil towards stagflation and then a depression.
All these problems are not solved because the federal government is not based on a
development plan for the country elaborated with the participation of the private sector
and civil society that generates transformation, change, progress, creation and
distribution of wealth. The gravity of the economic situation in Brazil at the time would
require the federal government offered the nation a consistent economic plan to tackle
the current crisis. By adopting neoliberal ideology, the federal government abandoned
the practice of leaving economic planning to intervene as it should with effectiveness in
the economic sphere.
The dissatisfaction of the population lies also in the political-institutional level. Brazil
faces a process of ethical and moral debacle in the political-institutional level never seen
in the history of the Country. The growing distrust of the population with respect to
political institutions is a great brand of our time because most of the candidates for
office in Brazil not are driven by the public interest, that is, to promote political,
economic and social benefit of the population. The elected positions in the executive
and legislature passes to be fundamentally a means to an elected candidate to provide
services to their campaign financiers enrich themselves and earn perks existing.
Situations are unacceptable by the majority of the population.
Unacceptable is also corruption in Brazil which is corresponding to the systemic use of
the state apparatus by government officials for illegitimate private purposes. Forms of
corruption include bribery or kickbacks, extortion, patronage, nepotism, cronyism,
influence peddling, use of government information for personal or privileged people
friends or relatives, buying and selling of judicial decisions, receiving gifts or services

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high value by authorities and embezzlement. The state of unrestrained political
corruption is known as systemic kleptocracy, literally meaning "ruled by thieves." A
study Fiesp (Federation of Industry of the State of São Paulo) pointed that the annual
cost of corruption in Brazil is around 41.5 and 69.1 billion reais (See the website
<http://www.fiesp.com.br/agencianoticias/2010/05/
21/seminario_crimes_sociais_cores.ntc>).
Another situation is unacceptable in the embezzlement of public funds in Brazil
manifested in spending excessive amount of ministries and other public bodies many of
them useless, costly regime bicameral (Chamber of Deputies and Senate), the excessive
number of commissioned positions in the three branches of government, the overpricing
in public works and execution of pharaonic works, such as stadiums for the World Cup,
among others. The fact is that we have today in Brazil, no less than 39 government
ministries.
It is clear that a number of these ministries are far from efficient and effective
administration of the country, serving more to meet partisan haggling with allies,
cronies and other political hangers. As a result, we have many ministries useless, that it
should be Secretariats within other government or regulatory agencies. The sewer of
corruption and mismanagement which lost billions of dollars in public funds has a size
unconscionable and unfathomable mystery.
Unacceptable for the Brazilian population is also the Brazilian regime bicameral (House
and Senate), which is costly and unproductive, constituting itself into another form of
misappropriation of public funds. It's time to reduce the cost Brazil, by adopting a
unicameral system, with the end of the Senate and the downsizing of the number of
parliamentarians. It´s necessary to end the binge with public money sponsored by bad
politicians, who long ago only give costs to the country, do not respect public spending
and not the pockets of taxpayers. The Senate is an institution that does not lack the
Country, only gives spending, and is decaying political stronghold, which have nothing
to do at home. While lack resources for investments in education, health and safety, the
spree of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate with taxpayer money continue without
parsimony.
The overpricing of public works is other forms of misappropriation of public money
unacceptable for the Brazilian population because the work costs more to enable their
implementation, the transfer of money paid to the builders, servers and corrupt MPs,
sending money not declared abroad, buying votes in election campaigns generating cost
to the taxpayer.
The result of systemic corruption and misappropriation of public funds is to rise public
spending in Brazil that are excessive burden for families and businesses with increased
taxes, and contribute to the increase in public debt. The Brazilian state has grown
strongly in recent years and is excessively large. The expense of the federal government
increased from 19% to 30% of GDP between 1995 and 2009 and the tax burden
imposed by the federal government, states and municipalities jumped from 27% of GDP
in 1995 to over 33.6% in 2009. This means that almost 34% of what workers produce
and businesses throughout the year are drawn from households and firms and then
reinjected into the economy through government spending. In turn, the net public debt
rose from 38.5% of GDP in December 2008 to 40.4% of GDP in December 2010.

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Everything that has to be reported is repudiated by the majority of the population
without the Brazilian government at all levels to take action to reverse the current
situation. How to change this sad reality? There is only one way: to convene a National
Constituent Assembly Exclusive to conduct political reforms that will help to give a
new economic order, political and social development in Brazil. This new Constituent
should not participate, however, the current members of Congress, but with citizens
uninvolved with the present political practice that decide to contribute to the
reconstruction of economic, political and social development of the country.
* Alcoforado, Fernando, engineer and doctor of Territorial Planning and Regional Development from the
University of Barcelona, a university professor and consultant in strategic planning, business planning,
regional planning and planning of energy systems, is the author of Globalização (Editora Nobel, São
Paulo, 1997), De Collor a FHC- O Brasil e a Nova (Des)ordem Mundial (Editora Nobel, São Paulo,
1998), Um Projeto para o Brasil (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 2000), Os condicionantes do
desenvolvimento do Estado da Bahia (Tese de doutorado. Universidade de Barcelona,
http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1944, 2003), Globalização e Desenvolvimento (Editora Nobel,
São Paulo, 2006), Bahia- Desenvolvimento do Século XVI ao Século XX e Objetivos Estratégicos na Era
Contemporânea (EGBA, Salvador, 2008), The Necessary Conditions of the Economic and Social
Development-The Case of the State of Bahia (VDM Verlag Dr. Muller Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG,
Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010), Aquecimento Global e Catástrofe Planetária (P&A Gráfica e Editora,
Salvador, 2010), Amazônia Sustentável- Para o progresso do Brasil e combate ao aquecimento global
(Viena- Editora e Gráfica, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2011) and Os Fatores Condicionantes do
Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2012), among others.