Bolsonaro's foul language & 'shielded kin' admission add insult to Brazil's Covid injuries

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's use of derogatory and foul language during a two-hour meeting has irked the Brazilian political sphere. According to reports, Bolsonaro has been receiving criticism from across the political spectrum for his foul language. The opposition is now hoping this could mark the beginning of the premature end of Bolsonaro's four-year term.

Marina Silva, once a presidential rival, has called his video a "horror show". She tweeted, "The video of the ministerial meeting is a freak show. They are amazing demonstrations of breach of decorum, contempt for institutions, administrative infractions and countless prejudices, such as insults given against indigenous people."

READ | Will Try To Start A Good Percentage Of International Flights Before August: Aviation Min

READ | ‘Not Amended Lockdown Order’ Clarifies Maharashtra Govt, No Air Travel Allowed Yet

The video could also go as proof of Bolsonaro meddling with the federal police, on which an investigation already is underway. According to the reports, Bolsonaro seems to reveal that he indeed intervened with the police investigation into his family. This could have serious implications for his presidency by providing potential grounds for impeachment as Bolsonaro also seems to confirm claims from his ex-justice minister Sergio Moro that he sought to shield his family from the investigation by meddling in the federal police, as about nineteen of the president’s relatives are reportedly facing police scrutiny, including two sons, although Bolsonaro denies that is the case.

However, there was no discussion on the COVID-19 crisis which has killed more than 21,000 in the South American country, with nearly 3000 deaths occurring on the day of the meeting. 

Sonia Birdi, Brazilian author and broadcaster, remarked as the meeting was a display of how the people of the nation have been abandoned by the government during the pandemic. Brazil has reported close to 331,000 COVID-19 cases, of which 21,048 have succumbed to the virus.

Though she is repulsed at Bolsonaro’s “egocentric, shallow and offensive” show, Flávia Oliveira, a columnist for the Brazilian newspaper, has said she is relieved that no indigenous candidate is a part of Bolsonaro's cabinet.

“What you see is a government that isn’t in the slightest bit engaged with the most pressing issue, not just for the country but for the whole planet.” Was it any wonder Brazil had been “plunged into this spiral of death, illness, inefficiency and incompetence” when this was the group in charge?

She adds, however, “The lack of diversity is shameful … But thank goodness my black brothers and sisters aren’t part of this. Thank goodness the indigenous are not involved. It gives me the chills to say this but thank goodness this isn’t our work. It’s the work of those who have always had a supremacist and destructive vision of Brazil”.

READ | Delhi Govt Ad Shows Sikkim 'not A Part Of India', State Demands Immediate Withdrawal

READ | 'Zero Tolerance': Delhi Govt Suspends Officer Over Ad That Said 'Sikkim Not Part Of India'