This Monday, the 11th, commenting on the thousand days of Jair Bolsonaro’s rule, political scientist Gentil Melo says in this interview that the president demonstrates a lack of political preparation regarding the ability to articulate and dialogue with parties. the presence of democratic institutions and ignorance of the country’s social and economic problems. “Examples are found in various social, economic, diplomatic and strategic areas of Brazil’s development,” he argues, assuring that Bolsonaro never had a political project. The scientist also criticizes the position of the president of the republic in dealing with the press and assesses the weight of Bolsonaro and Lula in the elections to the government of the state of Sergipe.
Are the thousands of days of Jair Bolsonaro at the head of the federal government justified?
No. The Bolsonaro government has shown insufficient political preparation regarding the ability to speak out and conduct dialogue with political parties and established democratic institutions, as well as ignorance of the country’s social and economic problems. Examples can be found in various social, economic, diplomatic and strategic development areas in Brazil. The government has failed to adopt a positive agenda for the country, and social and economic problems are exacerbated. In the political field, this is no exception: he adopted the political practice of clientelism and personalism, generously supporting the Centrão bloc to ensure the continuity of his government, which he had criticized up to this point.
How do you assess the position of a civil servant in the Bolsonaro government?
A very difficult and unfavorable situation for all workers in Brazil. Taking re-democratization as a time frame, we have never had a president who devalues and criminalizes civil servants in such a way, and who pursues a policy of disenfranchisement and refusal to invest in public services, to which the most economically vulnerable social classes are mostly victims. It is worth mentioning the draft PEC 32/202 – Administrative reform – amending the Constitution, created by the executive branch, which makes public services impossible for the subsequent implementation of private initiative, the leitmotif of governments in the conservative sphere.
Are the president’s mistakes more related to a political project or to the profile of Bolsonaro himself?
These two things are in harmony, firstly, because he never had a political project, even during the campaign he never presented a project for the development of the country, his line of speech was notorious in his speeches. He focused his campaign on fighting corruption, protecting the family and defending the homeland to the point that he appropriated the national flag as one of the most important symbols that entered the minds of the Brazilian people. As for his profile, just follow the news and see how he introduces himself and how he conducts dialogue with the population, establishing a very dirty and disrespectful dialogue with everyone, especially with the press, when asked about politics in the country. Another note that needs to be made is that the president is disrespectful and curses people, and then publicly portrays the mistakes and excesses made, which is incompatible with being an executive director.
Have the voters of Bolsonaro become more conniving at mistakes than the PT, which they criticize so much?
Typically, most of Bolsonaro’s voters reproduce what he thinks and agree with how he runs the country, so in their opinion, the government has not committed mistakes or crimes to the point of being criticized or eliminated, as the parameter The Errors are used or mistakes made by the PK, which in my opinion is a lack of fair criteria given the achievements of the PK governments. As for the self-assessment of the PT members, they certainly did so when many abstained from participating in the 2018 electoral process and, of course, pay a very high price for this decision.
Can you say that the opposition of the PT, and especially the former President Lula, prevents a part of the electorate from recognizing the mistakes of President Jair Bolsonaro? Is there, as they say in popular Portuguese, “political blindness”?
The 2018 elections showed this phenomenon, with some 40 million Brazilians failing to attend meetings to vote. Most of this segment did not approve of PT, but also did not approve of Bolsonaro’s candidacy. To some extent, I agree with your question, but the number of supporters of the Bolsonaro government declines when polls show the number of intentions to vote. As for “political blindness,” a special figure has emerged in Brazil today due to the lack of critical flair and intelligence for participating in Brazilian politics.
Do you believe in the Brazilian presidential election in the third way, or will there be a dispute between Bolsonaro and the candidate uniting the left?
No. First, given the polarization of politics in Brazil, there is no room for a third path, I see it as a distant and suicidal opportunity for a group that wants to defeat the Bolsonaro government. Second, a candidacy that acts as a third path will fail to present a political project that identifies with this alternative, deviating from the guiding principles of the parties that will be in the left field. And finally, a possible unification of the left – if we can classify it that way – will only happen under the leadership of the PT, which today is closer to the center than to the extreme left, albeit with a predominant position of the left.
Some political analysts say that Bolsonaro is not leaving the government. Do you believe there will be impeachment?
No. More than 100 requests to impeach Bolsonaro come from various sectors of Brazilian society, from political parties to other social organizations. A super-impeachment request was sent to the National Congress a few months ago, and this and others are awaiting acceptance by the President of the House. The coalition presidential regime is one of the political obstacles to the prosperity of this instrument in the political game.
Is Lula going to be a leftist candidate, in your opinion?
Organized social movements, parliamentarians from the progressive camp and other institutions call for nominations, which are promoted mainly in social programs. Therefore, whether a candidate is leftist is a different understanding will depend on how we conceptualize what it means to be left in the Brazilian political spectrum, however Lula has been presented as the greatest political force that opposes the group led by Bolsonar; Opinion polls have shown that his name is growing about twice as often as that of Bolsonaro, who runs for the presidency of the republic.
How is Lula, how does he get to the polls? How to gain the trust of an audience that fosters the image of a corrupt politician?
Polls have shown that he will be strong, at least the numbers confirm. I believe that the population does not nourish or defend a corrupt candidate. The problem of corruption in Brazil, as well as in peripheral or underdeveloped countries, is associated with a lack of civic education, possession of full citizenship that ensures civil, political and social rights, and effective mechanisms for interfering in government, the lack of these conditions and tools among the population will always strive to protect politicians who pretend to be the saviors of the Motherland, having as their main banner the fight against corruption.
What are the weight of Lula and Bolsonaro in the elections to the government of the state of Sergipe? Since both are candidates, does Governor Candidate Sergipe have a way to succeed beyond the two platforms?
Republican presidential candidates have significant influence over coalitions at other levels. As an illustration, simply analyze the composition of the Chamber of Deputies based on the number of candidates elected in 2018 by the acronym PSL, the former party of Bolsonaro, a party created to run in the 2018 presidential election. Regarding the second question. I see no success outside of these two platforms if implemented. Just look at how the state builds alliances around certain names, there are even well-defined names around these two platforms.
How do you rate the performance of the Covid 19 Index?
Disappointing in terms of positive results for society in effectively punishing those responsible for crimes committed in the fight against the new coronavirus. But at the same time, this is a case that somehow undermines the political image of the participants, at least for this.
In particular, are senators from Sergipe, members of the CPI, Alessandro Vieira and Rogerio Carvalho, on the right path?
These are two experienced parliamentarians with some experience in running the CPI. Senator Alessandro Vieira, although during his first term as a professional delegate, sets out procedures and methods for interviewing opponents to develop your arguments. They fulfill the regimental role envisaged in the house, however, I understand that they are on the right track, because I understand that in the policies adopted to combat the new coronavirus, there were crimes committed by political agents and people associated with the public administration. and the National Congress is one of the institutions with the prerogative to conduct investigations within the limits provided by law.
