Announcement about the meeting of rectors at the Ministry of Education

The rectors of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), the Federal Rural University of Semi-Árido (Ufersa) and the Federal Institute of Rio Grande do Norte (IFRN), accompanied by federal deputies Rafael Motta, Fábio Faria, Benes Leocádio, Walter Alves and General Girão, as well as senators Styvenson Valentim, Jean-Paul Prates and Zenaide Maia, met on the night of this Monday, 20th, with the Minister of Education, Abraham Weintraub, with the Secretary of Higher Education, Arnaldo Barbosa de Lima Júnior, and the Secretary of Professional and Technological Education, Ariosto Antunes Culau, at the Ministry's headquarters, in Brasília.
After opening the meeting by the minister and deputy Rafael Motta, coordinator of the bench, the dean of UFRN, Ângela Paiva, presented the profile of the Federal Higher Education Institutions in RN and the specific data of the university. Afterwards, he showed the impossibility of continuing the academic year after September, if there is no release. Then, the deans of IFRN, Wyllys Tabosa, and UFERSA, Arimatea de Matos, presented data from their institutions and, in the same way, asked for the availability of the budget provided for in the Annual Budget Law (LOA). According to both managers, operating conditions will also become unfeasible in the second half of the year. Together, the three institutions suffered a blockade of 109 million reais.
Although, immediately, the minister declared that there is no way to unlock the budget without the approval of the Pension Reform, “due to the situation of the economy being very difficult”, he still stated that the MEC will seek to respond to situations, case by case, together with the Ministry of Economy. Abraham Weintraub added that he defends free undergraduate education, although he highlighted the need to establish a new model for making the university work, permeated by the existence of other complementary sources of financing. The minister complemented by noting that he wants to start a new model of relationship between MEC, Ifes and parliamentarians, suggesting that the latter be the defenders of Federal Higher Education Institutions in RN. Finally, a approach proposed by Abraham Weintraub, to contain the Institutions' expenses, was to have the Military Police on the Campuses guaranteeing security. The rectors argued that the blockade does not only affect the contracting of people for property security and that the Ifes already work in partnership and complementarity with the military and federal police, in accordance with current legislation.
In the deans' assessment, the agenda created by the federal bench was extremely important to open the dialogue between the RN Ifes and the new MEC directors. Parliamentarians defend and support Ifes, seeing them as drivers of better living conditions and economic development in our State. The main result of the meeting was Minister Weintraub's willingness to analyze the specific cases of the institutions and seek alternatives with the Ministry of Economy. However, replanning will be necessary at each institution, given that maintaining the blockade makes it difficult, in some cases even prevents, the execution of academic projects and administration actions planned for 2019.
Angela Maria Paiva Cruz
Rector of UFRN
Willys Abel Farkatt Tabosa
Dean IFRN
José de Arimatea de Matos
Rector Ufersa