Bolsonaro appoints new minister in remote meeting

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro participated remotely Thursday in an official ceremony where the new education minister was sworn in. Bolsonaro, who tested positive to the new coronavirus on July 7, remained in the official residence the Alvorada Palace, while the newly appointed Education Minister Milton Ribeiro and other members of the government were at the presidential Planalto Palace.

In his first speech as minister Milton Ribeiro, a college professor and church pastor, said he was open to the dialogue with professors and teachers who, like him, were "sad" because of the situation of the education in the country. Religious groups supporting the president say the education ministry is key to boosting Christian values in Brazil, and casting aside what they deem is leftist influence in the schools.

Ribeiro is the fourth education minister in office since 2019 when Bolsonaro took power. The previous minister, Carlos Alberto Decotelli, left the position after only five days on the job amid multiple allegations that he had embellished his academic credentials. Decotelli's predecessor, Abraham Weintraub, was targeted in an investigation into a network that purportedly spread defamatory and threatening social media posts about Supreme Court justices.

Weintraub resigned June 18 and went to the United States. Before testing positive, Bolsonaro frequently mingled with crowds, sometimes without wearing a mask. Bolsonaro insisted that the controversial drug hydroxychloroquine had helped him to deal with the virus, despite scientists saying there was no medical evidence to suggest it worked.