Brazil elections 2022: Brazilian President says Armed Forces will not interfere in elections
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – President Jair Bolsonaro said on May 12, during a live broadcast on social networks, that the Armed Forces will not interfere in elections. The statement responded to the president of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), Edson Fachin, who earlier criticized attempts to discredit the Brazilian electoral system.
“I don’t know where he [Fachin] is getting this ghost that the Armed Forces want to interfere in the Electoral Justice. There is no interference; nobody wants to impose anything, nobody wants to attack the ballot boxes, attack Democracy, nothing like that. Nobody is engaging in anti-democratic acts. For God’s sake! The transparency of the elections, clean, transparent elections, is a matter of national security,” he said.
Hours earlier, during a visit to the TSE room where security tests are being conducted on the electronic ballot boxes, Minister Edson Fachin criticized the attempts to raise suspicions about the electronic ballot boxes.
“Those who deal with elections are unarmed forces and, therefore, concern the civilian population, which freely and consciously chooses its representatives. Therefore, dialogue yes, collaboration yes, but the final word is the Electoral Justice,” said Fachin.
The Armed Forces have been part, since last year, of the Electoral Transparency Commission (CTE), created by the Superior Electoral Court itself, involving different bodies. The objective was to give even more transparency to the electoral process. The military made a series of suggestions to the Court about the electoral process, some of which were accepted, and others were not incorporated by the technical area of the court.
“We will have, on October 2 – Brazil will have – clean elections, safe, with peace and security. Nobody and nothing will interfere with the Electoral Justice. We do not admit any circumstance that prevents Brazilians from manifesting themselves,” said Fachin.
With information from Agência Brasil
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