Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia), November 17, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Just before leaving Bolivia on Saturday (15), President Lula spoke briefly with reporters about the Ministerial reform. "The reform will be made at the proper moment. Reforms aren't made at the last moment, but when they are necessary. Six months ago I said I would make the reform, but it will occur at the right moment," he said.

When asked about the time frame, he replied: "You can rest easy. All the Ministers are Ministers until I convoke the Cabinet and discuss how to make the change. This will not happen abruptly, but, rather, with the same serenity with which I installed the Cabinet a year ago," Lula stressed upon his departure from the Los Tajibos Hotel, where he participated in the 13th Ibero-American Summit, in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.

He denied that he is suffering pressure from the political parties to make changes at the highest governmental level. "There is no pressure. People know that it is the President of the Republic who makes Cabinet changes and has discussions with political parties. Things will happen at the proper time," he affirmed.

As for his first meeting with ex-President Cardoso since taking office, Lula assured that there were no fences to mend. "It was a conversation between old friends. We have known each other since 1977," Lula observed, cutting short speculation about the encounter with his predecessor. Cardoso was invited to the Summit to present a strategic document, the "Cardoso Report," an assignment he received at the previous edition of the meeting, when he was still President.

"We conversed about Brazil, about his life, about what he has been doing. Let's see whether we put the Cardoso Report into practice by next year," concluded the President, who arrived in Brasília early Sunday morning. (DAS)