In a decisive legal move, the Ceará State Environmental Court has stepped in to halt a political protest that crossed into illegal territory. The court issued a preliminary injunction on April 27, prohibiting federal deputy André Fernandes (PL-CE) and city councilor Marcelo Mendes (PL) from dumping trash at any public buildings in Fortaleza. This ruling directly responds to an incident on April 9 where the politicians left numerous bags of garbage on the sidewalk in front of the Paço Municipal, the city's historic City Hall building.
The legal action was initiated by the Fortaleza City Hall, which filed an urgent petition to prevent the politicians from repeating their actions. Judge Edson Feitosa dos Santos Filho partially granted this request, emphasizing the legal and cultural significance of the site. The judge noted that the Paço Municipal is a historic building that has been officially protected since 2024, and that safeguarding such heritage is a constitutional obligation. Any act that damages or disrespects this property, even symbolically, is considered a harm to the rights of the entire community.
The incident itself was a calculated political statement. Earlier on April 9, Fernandes and Mendes had organized a cleanup of a local park that residents had complained was neglected. They then transported the collected waste and debris to the front of the City Hall, dumping it there as a protest against what they described as delayed garbage collection services by the municipal government. Fernandes documented the entire action in a video posted to his Instagram, framing it as a "mutirão" or community cleanup effort that was "delivering the trash to the City Hall."
This protest is part of a broader political conflict. Both Fernandes and Mendes are members of the opposition party PL, frequently using social media to criticize the administration of Mayor Evandro Leitão of the PT party, as well as the state government. The City Hall, however, characterized the trash-dumping as a mere "media stunt" and responded swiftly. The Fortaleza Inspection Agency (Agefis) issued seven separate infractions against the politicians, citing offenses including illegal waste disposal, performing a public service without a license, damaging public property, and obstructing public passage.
The city also reported a tangible cost to the stunt. The cleanup operation required diverting sanitation crews from their regular routes, generating an operational cost of R$1,400. According to Agefis, a total of 20 bags of trash were left at the scene. In the aftermath, Mayor Leitão publicly condemned the act, stating that the politicians were "caught" by the city's surveillance cameras and would be held legally accountable, hoping the case would serve as an example.
The court's decision, however, is only a preliminary step. The judge did not immediately rule on the City Hall's additional requests to fine the politicians R$100,000 and order them to delete the videos from their social media accounts. These matters will be considered later in the ongoing legal process, after the defense for Fernandes and Mendes has had the opportunity to present its arguments. As of the latest reports, the deputy's office had not responded to requests for comment, and the councilor's defense could not be located.
Based on reporting from g1.