By Richard Mann, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – President Jair Bolsonaro said on Wednesday, May 29th, that there are threats to his mandate and that his being in office goes “against the interests of many”.
When asked, he did not choose to answer which threats he was referring to, but said in a speech that no one “should covet his chair”, “because it is not easy to cope with pressure from several sectors of society.”
“Threats exist. Many have no interest in seeing me sitting in that chair,” said Bolsonaro after the ceremony of public investiture of the new Embratur president, Gilson Machado. “I won’t go into details. We are succeeding in governing Brazil.”
During an impromptu speech, Bolsonaro said that many of his votes in last year’s election were received from people previously excluded and that “a ghost hangs over the government” – a reference to the prospect of the left returning to power.
Bolsonaro said that he desires to achieve governability through “everyone’s awareness” and reported on the need to approve reforms to revive the economy, whose performance may jeopardize his mandate.
“It’s not about people getting in the way. The problem is that Brazil has a huge internal debt, a social security reform that some people are afraid to oppose, although it’s necessary for the good of all.”
He also discussed the return to a normal relationship with the country’s Congress.
“Logically, there are problems at the outset of any government, there are some ruffles, but we are never enemies,” he said, recalling that the day before, he hosted Chamber President Rodrigo Maia and Senate President Davi Alcolumbre, in addition to Supreme Court Presiding Justice Dias Toffoli, to discuss a pact between the three branches of government.
“This is returning to normality, to the desired relationship. I’m very happy about that.”
Bolsonaro’s attendance at the symbolical ceremony – as Embratur’s president took office last Thursday – was announced at the last minute and was not among the president’s agenda commitments.
(Source: O Estado de S. Paulo)