The hard core of Brazil’s next government will be made up of veterans who belong to the Workers’ Party (PT) or who were ministers during his 14 years in command. President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced to the hard core of the cabinet on Friday that he will begin his third term in office on New Year’s Day. Lula introduced the heads of companies, the civil house – synonymous with the prime minister -, defence, foreign relations and the judiciary. The strong man in business, as he always said, will be a politician, Fernando Haddad, 59, who led the PT to the presidency when Lula was imprisoned. The head of defense is a civilian, a man of consensus who gets on well with Jair Bolsonaro, the outgoing president.
Those selected for this first group of strategic ministers are all known in Brazilian politics. All men, mostly white. “The time will come when you will see a lot of women, a lot of black, Afro-descendants,” said the leftist Lula, flanked by some elected officials, as soon as he began his speech, even before publicly confirming the position entrusted to him. for each. This first bloc of nominations also lacks representatives from the dozens of parties that have allied with the PT and accepted Lula’s leadership to defeat Bolsonaro in defense of Brazilian democracy.
Lula chose to continue the association with Haddad at the head of the company, even though investors and corporate executives have already signaled to him with the fall in the stock market that they do not appreciate the choice of the former minister and university professor. prefer a more liberal one. However, he enjoys great confidence from the next president, who has promised fiscal responsibility but wants to prioritize social policy. With his appointment, Lula sends a message that he is prioritizing negotiations with Congress on economic reform. Haddad faces the challenge of stimulating economic growth in a country that has barely grown in a decade.
At the forefront of the defense will be 74-year-old José Múcio, who maintains a good personal relationship with Bolsonaro and who has appointed Lula as Minister of the Court of Auditors at the end of his second term. Its mission is to depoliticize the armed forces. Mauro Vieira, 71, becomes foreign minister, a diplomat returning to the position he held years ago that Bolsonaro banned by sending him as ambassador to Croatia. The person in charge of the civil house will be the former governor of Bahia, Rui Costa, 59 years old and also from the PT; and that of the Minister of Justice, former judge and former governor of Maranhão Flavio Dino, 54, who has always circulated for Lula’s party.
The nominations were announced during a press conference in Brasilia shortly before the start of Brazil’s match against Croatia at the World Cup. The only one absent, the next chancellor, who is now in Zagreb, Lula explained. “When the game is over, I will meet comrade Múcio,” he said, referring to the meeting in which he will speak with the future chief of defense and the next heads of the army, navy and air force. Everything indicates that Lula will continue the tradition of choosing the veteran.
Múcio, who has known Bolsonaro since they were both deputies, is considered the mediator with whom Lula wants to ease relations with the army. During Bolsonaro’s presidency, the fardados enjoyed unprecedented power in cabinet, government and public presence in the country’s restored democracy.
Three weeks after taking office, Lula begins to reveal who will join him in his return to power after winning the election against Bolsonaro. He pushed for these first names to be introduced over his original plan, saying “I need them to start forming a government.” He hopes to have interlocutors with them in Congress and the military. Dialogue with parliamentarians is essential to approve the additional funds needed to fulfill his key campaign pledge, the payment of 600 reais ($108, $114) to be received by 21 million families and 150 reais for each child under six year. A program to fight poverty that Bolsonaro has renamed Auxilio Brasil and will be renamed Bolsa Família.
Source: La Neta Neta
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
