Flávio Bolsonaro and Lula exchange corruption accusations in debate

Flávio Bolsonaro and Lula exchange corruption accusations in debate The Brazilian presidential candidates exchanged reproaches and discussed the cases of Lulinha and "Dark Horse" in the debate organized this Sunday by the Band network. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), adversaries in the second round of the presidential elections on October 25th, exchanged corruption accusations, posed questions that left the other without answers, provoked, and involved relatives in the first debate between them, held on the Band network on Sunday night. In the first block of the debate, Flávio addressed the case involving the lobbyist Roberta Luchsinger, who is being investigated—along with Fábio Luís Lula da Silva, known as "Lulinha," the president's eldest son—in three inquiries for corruption and influence peddling, according to the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo. On Saturday, in an interview with CNN Brazil, Luchsinger stated that she intends to reach a compensated denunciation agreement and will not protect Lula, without offering details or evidence of what she would reveal. Flávio asked Lula if he knew Roberta. The president responded that the Federal Police would take care of her and reiterated that anyone, even his son, would be investigated during his government. "I am not a father who protects his son, as you were protected by your father (...) I do not hide anything nor dismiss a minister because he did not want to change the director of the Federal Police," stated Lula, recalling the departure of former judge Sergio Moro from Jair Bolsonaro's government. The president, for his part, attacked with the Master case, questioning on several occasions the fate of 134 million reais that the former banker Daniel Vorcaro allegedly paid for the movie "Dark Horse," an ode to Jair Bolsonaro's history. "What did he do with the money? Was it to help his little brother betray Brazil?" asked Lula. Folha highlighted that Flávio avoided the topic again, as he has done throughout the campaign, and did not clarify the fate of the money, sent to a fund controlled by the lawyer Paulo Calixto, linked to Eduardo Bolsonaro, who is in the United States since February 2025, where he himself claims to live as a political exile. In his final remarks, Lula was interrupted by the shouts of the public. The moderator Adriana Araújo called the attention of the attendees and Flávio, for him to return to his own podium. The PL candidate resisted returning to his place, but Lula managed to deliver his last words. Neither of the two candidates participated in the first round debates. The Globo debate, scheduled for October 1st, was canceled amid judicial decisions regarding the rules and the participation of the candidates. In the second round, Record canceled the debate scheduled for the 11th, citing scheduling problems for the presidential candidates. Likewise, on Band, both were absent in August. This Sunday's debate takes place amid a tight contest for the Presidency. A Datafolha poll, released on Thursday, showed Flávio Bolsonaro with 47% of the vote intention and Lula with 45%. Meanwhile, a Quaest poll released on Wednesday placed Flávio with 46% and Lula with 44%. In both cases, the candidates are technically tied. In the first round on October 4th, Flávio finished ahead, with nearly 2.2 million more votes than Lula, a difference of 1.87 percentage points. COMMENTS To comment on this article you must be a subscriber. Latest Most read 1. 3. 5. Some read, others inform. Take this unique offer. Digital Plan +$4,120 per month, from here until the end of the year SUBSCRIBE