“I did not make any mistakes at all”: Bolsonaro’s defense of his management of the pandemic

BRASILIA.- Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, He said on Tuesday that he had taken no false measures against the coronavirus and assured that faith can heal the sick, while Congress established the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (ICC) into alleged government “omissions” in the face of the pandemic.

“It is not easy to manage a country of this size, the pandemic has affected a lot, a lot of people died, but unfortunately you have to live with it, but you don’t have to stay at home, there is depression, suicidesSaid the president.

“I did not make a mistake” in the face of the pandemic, added Bolsonaro at the official residence, a few kilometers from where the senators gathered for the ICC’s first hearing which will focus on government policy in the face of the crisis.

The ICC has started meeting with senators’ in-person votes on the composition of the body that will operate for the next three months, with a term that can be extended for three months.

Since the arrival of the pandemic in Brazil in February 2020, Bolsonaro opposed the social isolation measures, citing their negative economic impact; He also rejected the use of chin straps; questioned the effectiveness of vaccines and advocated remedies such as hydroxychloroquine, without proven efficacy against the disease.

Scientists and politicians attribute to these positions the delay in vaccination and the difficulty of obtaining vaccinations in this country of 212 million inhabitants, with a toll of close to 400,000 deaths from covid, surpassed only by the United States.

The ICC will analyze whether there has been negligence or acts of corruption in the management of the pandemic, including the oxygen supply crisis which in January caused the death by suffocation of dozens of people in Manaus, the capital of the state of Amazonas.

Beyond the new facts discovered, The probe is expected to create a political spectacle, with lawmakers pinning Bolsonaro on the ropes ahead of next year’s tense presidential election., where it is almost certain that he will seek re-election.

While the investigation may add to impeachment calls against Bolsonaro, experts say this is an unlikely outcome. Instead, they suggested the government could blame former health minister Eduardo Pazuello, who oversaw the chaos in the Amazon and was criticized for slow vaccine negotiations.

AFP and ANSA agencies

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