The electoral year has arrived, and Campo Grande already has at least five politicians vying for mayor. The moment is to show political strength to the competitors and to study the possibilities before everything, in the case of the president of the Municipal Chamber, a four-term councilman, Carlos Augusto Borges, known as “Carlão” (PSB). He does not hide that, being invited to be a vice-candidate, he will accept, but less than that, he already anticipates, he will not. He wants the PSB to be able to elect at least three council members.
“If you are not a candidate for anything, you are not remembered,” says Carlão.
The PSDB, MDB, and Avante want the support of the PSB (Brazilian Socialist Party), according to the councilman. It is clear, therefore, that he only expects the competing parties to decide whether they will offer him the desired space on the ballot. Everything depends on many conversations and internal polls, in which the parties seek to know the profile of the mayor and vice-mayor that the population wants to see at the polls.
“We are evaluating whether the PSB will have resources from the Party Fund, because we do not want to ‘kill’ the slate of council members. We have to launch at least 30 candidates, 21 men and 9 women,” comments Carlão.
He explains that if he insists on being a mayoral candidate with little money in the party’s coffers, he knows that he will not have a great chance of election and will also waste resources that could be used to win seats in the Municipal Chamber to increase the representativeness of the PSB, which only has him at the moment.
The PDT (Democratic Labor Party) will bring councilman Marcos Tabosa in March when the parliamentarians can change parties without losing their mandates.
“I will not brag, but my re-election as a councilman is almost 80% guaranteed because we provide daily work, and only councilors who do not serve the people lose the election. It doesn’t mean that I’m re-elected, but there’s a chance to continue. Now, if we have a situation where I am a vice-mayor candidate, I will also put my name forward. Our priority is to have a major role and not to remain as a supporting role,” says Carlão.
Recognized for his ability to speak in a simple manner and avoid confrontation without losing the firmness to position himself when necessary, the councilman makes some criticisms of Mayor Adriane Lopes’ administration (PP) but reveals that she is his friend.
In the same way, he always avoids offending the secretariat when he complains about the old problems of the capital, such as potholes in the streets, lack of maintenance in health posts, and endless lines for exams and consultations with specialists.
When the “hammer falls” and Carlão is a candidate for mayor or vice-mayor, he guarantees that he will continue to “separate things” regarding his work in the Municipal Chamber and the electoral race.
“Councilors who engage in party opposition will not be allowed, and I believe they will not even be elected because the population is already keeping an eye on this type of behavior,” opines Carlão.
Focus on Philanthropy – With an electoral base in the neighborhoods of the periphery, Carlão emphasizes that he will continue to do his term and campaign as he has always done, focused on “aiding those who need it the most and when they need it the most.” This means helping with financial resources, from those who need an exam at a private clinic because the Unified Health System (SUS) is not providing it, to those who cannot afford to bury a family member.
He receives criticism from the “flag and social networks” candidates, who are emerging with a new way of doing politics, but he does not care.
“I respect all the candidates, and we have to respect the polls as well, if the people have chosen. But some things cannot wait. The candidate has to have their human side, but there are people who are far away from the people, just on social media,” he says.
The philanthropic work Carlão does through the UCAF (Campo-grandense Union of Favela and Settlement Residents’ Associations). He used to be president, but is now retired. Despite this, it is for the entity that he forwards requests for help that arrive daily.
Projects – At the Chamber, before the elections, the president still has the discussion of the draft administrative reform project to cut spending and merge secretariats, which the mayor is expected to submit to the vote among the parliamentarians. “As long as it does not harm the civil servant, we will support it. The public structure of the city hall is very large,” he opines.
In addition, the Legislative House expects projects to change the Noise Law, define a new concession for parking in the central region, and the exemption from ISSQN (Tax on Services of Any Nature) as a subsidy to the Guaicurus consortium to hold the bus fare.
The councilman believes that the city hall could reach an agreement with the Guaicurus concessionaire, as long as the company commits to specific improvements, such as putting a specific number of new air-conditioned vehicles on the streets.
