The choice of semi-presidential not prevent future political crises in Brazil, where the source of problems is the malfunction of the party system.
The analysis is the Portuguese Jorge Reis Novais, professor of constitutional law at the University of Lisbon and a leading expert on the topic in the country.
"I do not believe is semi-presidential solution to Brazil. No model is able to work well. The source of the problems is in the malfunction of the party system," he says.
"While here in Europe there is what I call party discipline, Brazilian parties are not distinguished from each other by ideology. It is a very personalized system. Vote on the candidate, not the party. The trend towards instability and ungovernability is very stronger. This prevents any form of government, "adds Novais.
The discussion of new systems of government, including the semi-presidential, should be part of the cycle of lectures on the 4th Luso-Brazilian Seminar on Law, which begins on Tuesday in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon. But the event, which had originally academic, eventually became the center of a political controversy on both sides of the Atlantic.
Entitled "Constitution and Crisis: The Constitution in the context of political and economic crises", the meeting is organized by Public Law Brasiliense Institute (IDP)? which has among its founders the Minister of STF (Supreme Court) Gilmar Mendes? in partnership with the Faculty of Law, University of Lisbon.
The controversy surrounding the seminar, however, does not concern the issue to be debated, but rather to its participants. Some of the key leaders in favor of impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff, as the PSDB senators José Serra and Aécio Neves, accepted the invitation to lecture or speak, as part of the Portuguese political elite.
Vice President Michel Temer and the president of Fiesp (Federation of Industries of São Paulo) Paulo Skaff were among the guests, but canceled the trip to the Portuguese capital.
Behind the scenes, it is said that the meeting would be an 'excuse' for opposition leaders to gather outside to discuss the impeachment of President Dilma and a possible government Temer.
In recent interviews, former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso was also a supporter of the semi-presidential model.
Jorge Reis Novais is a leading expert on the subject in Portugal
semi-presidential
Hybrid system between presidentialism and parliamentarism, the semi-presidential is adopted in countries such as France and Portugal. In it, the president (head of state) is elected by popular vote and shares the executive command with the prime minister (head of government), chosen with the approval of Congress.
In this system, however, unlike the parliamentary system, the president is not restricted to a purely ceremonial role. He has a voice and appoints the prime minister, may occasionally fire him. It also has the ability to dissolve Congress and call new elections. The deadline for this varies according to the laws of each country, said Novais.
"This is a much more flexible system than presidentialism, because both the president can dissolve Congress, calling early elections, the Congress can replace the government. The president, however, remains in office," the Portuguese constitutionalist .
"In the parliamentary system, for example, the prime minister is chosen by the government of the majority and can be brought down by Parliament," he adds.
According to him, the semi-presidential is also more advantageous than presidentialism in crisis situations.
"In the presidential system, the president is elected forms the government nor Congress can dismiss the government or the president can dissolve Congress. If there is a crisis, you can not solve it. You will need to wait for the next elections," he points out.
'Impasse'
However, Novais did not believe the model would work in Brazil.
"I have serious doubts whether the semi-presidential work in Brazil. The Brazilian party system is a major source of instability. While there is a broad political reform, no system of government will work.
Not solve any problems, "the expert predicts.
According to the Portuguese constitutionalist, the result would be a "stalemate".
"Imagine if Brazil were a semi-presidential republic. In the current situation, Congress probably dissolve the government, but President Dilma Rousseff, elected by popular vote, would remain in power," he explains.
"That's where the difficulty of the party system. Easily be formed in Congress a large majority against the government, but then which government would come out of Congress? With the system so diffuse parties, it is very difficult any system of government work," he adds.
Novais caveat, however, that the semi-presidential system also has problems, especially when Congress and the president are "different political colorations."
"In this case, there is an ongoing conflict between the president and the government. Neither the president can dismiss the government or Congress can dismiss the president," he said.
The Portuguese constitutionalist further argues that, contrary to what the public thinks, the president has his powers reduced in the semi-presidential system.
"In the semi-presidential system, the president, elected by popular vote, has a very strong democratic legitimacy. It usually intervene, especially in crisis situations. Moreover, it has the right to veto the measures taken by the government and the Parliament. It also has the power to appoint state figures. "
"If you have Congress in their favor, the president ends up having much more power. This is the case of France, for example. The French president now has more power than President Barack Obama. The president can not, for example, dissolving Congress but needs to rule with him, "he adds.
According to Novais, president of France (semi-presidential) now has more power than the US president (presidential)
impeachment
Novais criticizes the way the impeachment has been used in Brazil. According to him, his principle was "distorted".
"The impeachment should not be an instrument to solve political problems, but rather impeachable offenses, when President commits any illegality in office," he says.
"As Brazil is currently experiencing an unprecedented political crisis, in which neither the president can dissolve Congress or be fired for it, the challenge of the mandate became a feature to solve a lock. And in this case, it is not a legitimate way, "he adds.
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