Dr. Francisco Dominguez, senior lecturer at Middlesex University, told Radio Sputnik's Brian Becker that the arrest of Cunha, who worked tirelessly to create the conditions for the coup to succeed, is an "equal justice" show, aimed at clearing the way for charging ex-President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, to prevent Lula from participating in the 2018 presidential election.
"Eduardo Cunha is probably the most corrupt politician in the land," Dominguez asserted. "Cunha's being sacrificed in order to create the moral conditions…to try and go for Lula, which is really the big prize, from their point of view."
Brazilian-British journalist Victor Fraga, participating in the radio discussion, agreed with the assertion, suggesting that Cunha simply agreed to temporarily play the role of a scapegoat, so that Lula, founder of the Workers Party and an ex-president with a record approval rating, would be deprived of the opportunity to participate in, and potentially win, the next election in Brazil.
According to Fraga, charges that will eventually be brought against Lula are either not serious or not real, and would not prevent him from winning, especially as his current political persecution has resulted in increased popularity.
"Lula is now beyond a president, he's a myth. And they want to bust that myth," Fraga said. "Their purpose is not to arrest him and let him go, their purpose is far beyond that. They want him to die in jail…They want to show people that this is what happens when a working class person gets to power."
Dominguez expressed doubt that such drastic measures are part of a plan, but stressed that barring Lula from becoming a candidate would be a crime, questioning whether popular sentiment in the country would allow it to happen.
