On International Day of Families, President #Bolsonaro received tens of thousands of supporters in front of the Planalto Palace. People going by themselves and them wearing the Brazilian colors and waving the Brazilian flag were in a stark contrast to when ex-president #Lula gathered people there, wearing red and waving red flags, and many of them being paid and fed, and given a ride in order to attend it.
#SaoPaulo Mayor #BrunoCovas died today. He was in the ICU and the hospital had released a statement a couple of days ago saying his condition was irreversible. He had adenocarcinoma. Covas started having problems in 2019, but was able to keep working during his treatment. He was much criticized for his opposition to President #Bolsonaro, for his strong lockdown measures, and also for not obeying his own orders. #covid#pandemic
According to the opinion poll #Datafolha, the infamous Marxist and ex-president #Lula, whose charges of corruption were nullified by the #SupremeCourt (#STF) recently, wins over #Bolsonaro in the first round and with a good margin. This is the same push #Biden got by a large part of the media and of opinion polls. If Bolsonaro doesn't get paper trail to be approved and added to the voting machines to avoid election fraud, nobody will be able to prove the contrary if Lula's elected (because it's inconceivable that he wins if the Bolsonaro administration keeps going as it's been).
The Ministry (Department) of Economy, whose minister is #PauloGuedes, was able to get passed a law that will help companies save thousands of reals a year with newspapers. Until then, companies listed in the stock market were forced to pay the printing press to publish their annual balance. With the internet, social media, and cell phones, there's no need for this. The printing press should lose 150 million reals per year, but some kinds of companies still have to pay for that. The gov't will try to extend this change to all companies.
The #SupremeCourt (#STF) voted 8-3 to limit in 20 years the time for medical patents to expire, and this is not for new patents only, but any patent that has already exceeded 20 years. Some say this could be a bad move as it could drive labs away or keep labs from being installed in Brazil. In the #UnitedStates, it's 20 years.
A consortium composed of 9 governors from the Northeast of Brazil ordered nearly 49 million reals in ventilators from a company called #HempcarePharma (specialized in selling products related to the cannabis). The ventilators were never delivered and some people have already been arrested, including the owner, #CristianaPrestes, and her business partner, #LuizHenriqueRamos, but they were released after being heard by the police. She said they'd bring the ventilators from #China but noticed there was some issue with them only later. They then offered Brazilian-made ventilators instead and for a cheaper price, primising to deliver 480 units instead of 300. Problem is, the Brazilian ones were never approved by the regularoty agency (#Anvisa). #BrunoDauster, then secretary of the house staff in #Bahia, tried to solve the problem by convincing Prestes to increase the value of the contract in 52%, to which she refused, saying she didn't want to “RAPE THE STATE.” Prestes said she was surprised to receive all the money up front and so quickly (not common in this kind of contract in #Brazil), two days after the contract was signed. Also, Prestes was surprised when she received an order from a judge in #Araraquara, State of #SaoPaulo, to sign a donation document, since the mayor, #EdinhoSilva, informed he had ordered 30 ventilators and had not received any, and that they'd be paid by the consortium. #CarlosGarbas was assigned executive secretary of the consortium and was the person behind all the negotiations and contacts. Garbas has been involved in several corrupt cases, and his ascension to power came while he was ex-President #Dilma's driver, when he got a temporary employement in government as a senator's assistant making a lot more money. From then on, he kept moving up and growing in influence, became minister more than once. It's Garbas who made this deal with Araraquaras' mayor, which Prestes was not aware of. In other words, this #COVID committee, if going in the right direction, will reveal and clarify a myriad of intricate corruption like this one case seems to be.
During the police operation in #Jacarezinho Favela which resulted in one police officer and 27 criminals dead (and some others injured, including citizens) police found documents about the operation, suggesting someone in the department is leaking information.
The #PCC (Capital's First Command, one of Brazil's criminal organizations) is accused of laundering money diverted from the #pandemic help sent to #RiodeJaneiro.
#Twitter was not allowing a video to play where it shows the ex-president of the Senate and now president of a suspicious committee to investigate irregularities committed during the #pandemic#RenanCalheiros (one the perfect stereotypes of the “successful” Brazilian corrupt) throwing a tantrum when a senator suggests that they invite the federal police director to attend and help with the committee. #covid
Ex-president Fernando Henrique Cardoso, commonly referred to by Brazilians as #FHC, said in a recent interview about ex-president #Lula running in 2022 “MAKE DO WITH WHAT YOU HAVE” (or literally, “IF YOU CAN'T HUNT WITH A DOG, HUNT WITH A CAT), only confirming (once more) that he and his party, the #PSDB, differs nothing from the infamous leftwing #PT, except in the manners, being more diplomatic and keeping a profile low when it comes to pushing their Marxist agenda. #marxism
During President #Bolsonaro's daily stop to talk to supporters last week, a woman said “IN #FOZDOIGUACU, THEY ARE ALREADY TALKING ABOUT LOCKING PEOPLE DOWN AGAIN,” to which he replied “I ALREADY SENT THE MESSAGE I WANTED TO. FROM NOW ON, I'M GOING TO TAKE ACTION.” What he means by this is that he will take action against any mayor or governor that imposes a lockdown from now on, since, under the current circumstances, it's nearly unanimously considered to be unconstitutional.
The #SupremeCourt (#STF) Judge-Minister #Barroso, who said “WE DON'T FIX WHAT'S NOT BROKEN” referring to the wish of #conservatives and President #Bolsonaro to add paper trail to the voting machines, has started a campaign to push back in the hopes of getting enough votes in #Congress to block this change. He already posted three videos on YouTube. Among many things, he says “[THIS CAMPAIGN] IS ABOUT THE SECURITY, THE TRANSPARENCY, AND THE POSSIBILITY OF AUDIT OF THE BRAZILIAN PROCESS,” and also “IN THE VOTING MACHINES AND IN THE BRAZILIAN PROCESS YOU CAN TRUST.” The proposed system will allow the machine to print the vote so the voter can see it, but the voter won't be able to touch it; they will see it through a glass window. If the number and name on the paper is correct, the voter confirms it and the machine deposits the paper into a ballot box. It's two ways of auditing against one; but Barroso, who has been having a shameful role in the STF, is all in for pushing back on this change. The first video of the justice Barroso got 10,000 views and 95% dislikes, his second one got 38,000 views and 94% dislikes, and his third and latest one got 44,000 views and 89% dislike (as of May 15th). The comments are overwhelmingly negative and hostile to Barroso and the STF, showing how infamous and unpopular the Supreme Court is to the eyes of Brazilians. Unfortunately, even if #Congress approves the paper trail, the STF has the authority to block it, and the chances of them blocking it is high.
Yesterday, prosecutor #ThaisPossati, 35 and in her 27th week of pregnancy, took the #AstraZeneca/#Fiocruz shot, suffered a stroke, was taken to an ER, but her and her baby died. There's no information on if she already had any serious health condition. A few hours later, #ANVISA (the health regulatory agency) posted a recommendation for pregnant women not to be given the AstraZeneca/Fiocruz vaccine. Unfortunately, many people (although a minority) who don't have a serious health condition and are young are taking the #COVID shot on their own. TBB doesn't know if this was Thais' case.
The Feds asked the #SupremeCourt (#STF) for an authorization to open an investigation on the STF Judge-Minister #DiasToffoli. This a first in the history of #Brazil. #Toffoli was informed on by #SergioCabral for receiving payments totalling 4 million reals in bribery while he was one of the judge-ministers of the #ElectoralSupremeCourt in order to judge in favor of two mayors in the State of #RiodeJaneiro. Cabral was Rio's governor from 2007 to 2014, when he resigned to avoid losing his political rights. After becoming a defendand for the tenth time in 2017, he was sentenced to 14 years in jail. He became a defendent again and again, receiving further sentencing, and he has now accumulated more than 280 years. His sentencing is in a stark contrast to how high profile politicians are held accountable in Brazil. #Lula, for instance, recently had all his charges dropped. There's little doubt all this sentencing is a retaliation agaisnt Cabral. Toffoli was STF's president from 2018 to 2020, just when an avalanche of requests for further investigations were sent to the STF following Cabral's hearing, twelve in total, and Toffoli, as president, dismissed every single one of them. The question now is if the STF will authorize this investigation on Toffoli. Some say the STF has no way out, that dismissing the request means looking bad for them, giving the impression that Toffoli is hiding something and his colleagues are giving him cover. But, considering that an investigation on Toffoli can lead to the implication of other big fish, and that the STF already looks quite bad before the population due to their several and recent controversial rulings and that they don't seem to care, the chances of this request being denied is quite high, and if it is, there's nothing the Feds can do.
President #Bolsonaro attended the opening of a 1-mile bridge connecting the State of #Acre to #Rondonia. The construction had been planned to start 6 years ago, but it was impeded by the strong lobby of ferryboat owners who was making about 100,000 reals a day by charging to transport vehicles, cargo, and people from one side to the other.
The civil and military police of #RiodeJaneiro made a surprise raid in the Favela of #Jacarezinho with the purpose of arresting some criminals involved in recruiting underage youngsters to work with drug dealing. During the raid, criminals quickly responded with heavy fire and fatally hit one officer in the head. Shots coming from criminals hit passengers inside a city train. 25 criminals were killed during the operation. The police used helicopters, which had been restrict by the #SupremeCourt (#STF) to fly any closer than 1.25 miles from a school or hospital, greatly diminishing the effectiveness of operations by giving criminals a hint of which areas they can use for cover from an air patrol or an air chase.
#SergioMoro gave up running for president in 2022. #Moro became notorious for leading the #LavaJato (#CarWash) operation, the biggest anticorruption operation #Brazil has ever seen. He was assigned minister of justice by President #Bolsonaro but later fell into disgrace. The amount of loss of reputation and importance he reached is remarkable.
President #Bolsonaro attended a motorcycle ride on #MothersDay.
He rode along with hundreds of others in the streets of #Brasilia. This city is known to host the third largest motorcycle event in the world, #BrasiliaCapitalMotoWeek, which lasts 10 days and happens toward the end of July to coincide with National Motorcyclist Day on July 27th (World Motorcycle Day is on June 21st). Bolsonaro is used to riding a motorcycle a couple of times a month, and one or another person would approach him and express their wish to have the chance to ride along. Bolsonaro then decided to plan this last Sunday's ride. #capitalmotoweek
#RiodeJaneiro Mayor #EduardoPaes was caught disobeying his own city's pandemic restrictions. He was filmed singing in a bar called #ArmazemSenado, the place was crowded inside, no social distancing, and very few people is seen wearing a mask including him.
During this morning's stop to talk to supporters, President #Bolsonaro said, “LOOK, BRAZIL IS AT ITS LIMIT. PEOPLE SAY I SHOULD DO SOMETHING. I AM WAITING FOR THE PEOPLE TO GIVE ME A SIGN, BECAUSE HUNGER, MISERY, JOBLESSNESS; IT'S THERE FOR ANYONE TO SEE.”
Business people, employees, and some of the population of the City of #Muriae, #MinasGerais, joined forces and drove away police officers and health inspectors that were checking if businesses were complying with the city's and state's lockdown measures.
The export of some commodities to #China has shown continued increase since #Bolsonaro took office, and the number of businesses opened in 2020 is 6% higher compared to the same period of 2019.
At least two of the biggest old mainstream news media reported the news that #China recognizes their vaccine has low efficacy as, “CHINA CONSIDERS MIXING VACCINES (or STUDIES WAYS) TO IMPROVE EFFICACY.” #COVID
New photos and videos shared online are going viral for showing buses and trains in #SaoPaulo continuing to operate at lower capacity, resulting in large agglomerations and the impossibility of social distancing.
A law bill proposing that remote meetings by congresspeople be permanent was presented. The argument is that it will help the government save a lot of money with facilities, services, food, supplies, and with commuting.
A law bill proposing a “passport” that identifies who has #COVID and who took the vaccination shot has been presented. Just as what has been proposed in other countries, the passport can be used as a requirement to buy products and to use services.
The ex-interim president of #Brazil, #MichelTemer, will work as a lobbyist for the Chinese company #Huawei during the 5G bidding.
As of two days ago, the government delivered 47 million vaccine shots and 26 million of them were given.
The Senate already have enough signatures to add mayors, governors, and #SupremeCourt judge-ministers into a nationwide investigation on the use of money to fight #COVID. Some governors want to restrict the investigation at the federal level; want it to investigate how federal money was used, but not state and city money.
During #Bolsonaro's morning stop to talk to supporters he said the rest of the audio of the phone call recorded by Senator #Kajuru should be released. “I SAID MORE THINGS IN THAT CONVERSATION. EVERYTHING I SAID CAN BE RELEASED.” Kajuru said on #CNN that the president of #Pfizer went to the Palácio do Planalto (the president's office) to offer their vaccine, got there at 8am and waited until 6pm when he was told the president would receive him. Kajuru said that an ex-minister of the Ministry [Department] of Health witnessed this event. Bolsonaro tweeted it's a lie and asked Kajuru to name said minister. CNN asked Pfizer for comments and they were told this situation didn't happen. Kajuru's party announced it wants him out. Not because Kajuru seems to be lying about the president and the government, but because his plan doesn't seem to be working. One of the president's son, #FlavioBolsonaro, who's also a senator, sent a request to the Senate Ethics Council accusing Kajuru of unconstitutional behavior for recording and releasing a phone call with the president while both were in office without Bolsonaro's permission.
The #SupremeCourt (#STF) judge-minister that was appointed by President #Bolsonaro last year, #KassioNunes, was chosen to be the one to decide whether the request for the impeachment of Judge-minister #AlexandredeMoraes will be taken to a vote in the Senate, but the president of the Senate, #RodrigoPacheco, doesn't seem willing to allow the vote to happen. He argued, “WE WON'T ALLOW THAT THE SENATE ACT AS AN AVENGER AGAINST THE #SUPREMECOURT [#STF].”
An 88-year-old Brazilian actor called #StenioGarcia took the two shots of the Chinese vaccine #Sinovac (under the research name #Coronavac) and tested positive for #COVID, calling the attention again to the long-reported low efficacy of this one vaccine. The test result said he didn't even develop any antibody. The Brazilian organization behind the import of Sinovac, #Butanta (Butantã), is pushing for a third vaccination.
#Niteroi's mayor imposed restrictions on what can be bought at supermarkets and grocery stores. According to him, only “essential” items can be sold from this Monday on. #RiodeJaneiro
A senator called #JorgeKajuru leaked a six-minute phone conversation he recorded between him and President #Bolsonaro discussing the request to open an investigation on the government's actions in relation to the #pandemic. In the audio, Bolsonaro tells #Kajuru, the main author of the investigation request, that, as is, the investigation will leave mayors and governors and #SupremeCourt (#STF) judges out of it, rendering an unfair and incomplete investigation. Kajuru asks the president to be more considerate of him because he is on his side. Bolsonaro says he believes in his good intention, but reinforces that he signed an investigation that aimed at questioning the government only and that no good intention could make up for this fact. He asks Kajuru to show his good intention by adding mayors and governors and Supreme Court judges into the request, since all of them took decisions of their own regarding the #pandemic, to which Kajuru fails to give a positive and confident answer. The request clearly asks “TO INVESTIGATE THE ACTIONS AND OMISSIONS OF THE FEDERAL GOV'T.” In a part where it says “JUSTIFICATION [FOR THE RESQUEST],” it starts with, “THE FEDERAL GOV'T HAS, SYSTEMICALLY, VIOLATED BASIC AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE BRAZILIAN POPULATION WHEN IT COMES TO LIFE AND HEALTH.” The reason he gave for the leak is that people was bothering him by saying he was having private conversations with the president, so he wanted to show he had nothing to hide. Problem is, #Globo, the biggest public television in #Brazil and also an openly antiBolsonaro organization, covered the leak in their Sunday night's show #Fantastico e Kajuru showed approval and reposted it on Twitter account. The fuel for animosity towards Bolsonaro had been low recently, and this leak was the fuel the opposition needed to raise hell again and boost their call for Bolsonaro's impeachment, alleging he was trying to interfere with the powers, trying to collude with a senator to go after the opposition. Further evidence Kajuru recorded and leaked the call with bad intention is a tweet where he says, “KASSIO, WE KNOW YOUR PRICE!!!” #KassioNunes is a conservative judge-minister appointed by Bolsonaro. Nunes signaled he would vote against the investigation if mayors and governors and judge-ministers weren't added to it. #COVID
The #Bolsonaro administration got a much higher value in investment from the ports' and airports' concessions bidding than they expected, making the left go nuts after months insinuating the government was a disaster and the world was afraid of investing in #Brazil. This also shows that many foreign investors are not that naive to rely only on what the mainstream media reports.
Despite the fact it is known the #vaccine is no longer any guarantee of protection, that you should take further unknown number of shots, that it has caused adverse effects in dozens of thousands of people—some hundreds died—that they modify humans cells in an irreversible way that's still not known, and that health people and children don't need them, Minister of Economy #PauloGuedes', recently appointed Minister of Health #MarceloQueiroga's, and President #Bolsonaro's recent announcements clearly imply that a mandatory vaccination could be coming, going against the strongest of Bolsonaro's stances regarding the vaccine; in his own words, “A MANDATORY VACCINATION, ONLY OVER MY DEAD BODY.” Some people say this is a strategy by the Bolsonaro administration to lower the opposition's awareness to some kind of strategy, while others say that the Bolsonaro ADM is simply being tricked into giving the opposition time to keep ruining the country's economy and disheartening his supporters. Every single day that goes by, more businesses than usual either close or are sold; big ones get bigger, and small ones disappear or are absorbed by the big ones; lands and properties are sold, and... Who knows to whom? Every single day that goes by, more people get poor, get discouraged, get jobless, and more children get less education.
After an important meeting this Wednesday with representants of the three branches of power (#Congress, #Senate, and #SupremeCourt [#STF]), of some ministers, and of some governors from the four regions of #Brazil, President #Bolsonaro announced the creation of a committee in the hopes that it will speed up a response to the demands coming from cities and states, and avoid later antagonisms by any of them, since any decision made by the committee is supposed to be backed by them all. The Ministry (Department) of Health will be entirely responsible for decisions regarding the use of preventive medicine. The president of the STF, #LuizFux, said he can't participate of the committee directly, but he guaranteed that the STF will work to avoid the committee's decisions to have to pass through lengthy judicial processes. The committee should meet once per week.
The president of the #SupremeCourt (#STF) said he accepts an invitation from #Bolsonaro to meet with him this week to discuss a national plan to fight the #pandemic. Although the Brazilian states are not as independent to take decisions on their own as are the American states, the STF ruled early on that the measures would be up to the states. The chairs of the #Congress and the #Senate, and some governors and mayors are also expected to attend this meeting. #COVID
During #Bolsonaro's daily morning stop to talk to supporters on his way to office, he said, “WHAT HAVE I BEEN SAYING? CHAOS IS COMING. HUNGER WILL TAKE PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR HOMES. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE PROBLEMS WE NEVER EXPECTED WE WOULD. SERIOUS SOCIAL PROBLEMS. [...] WHERE ARE WE GOING TO END UP? I WONDER IF THE GOV'T WILL HAVE TO TAKE SOME DECISION BEFORE THAT HAPPENS. IS THE POPULATION READY FOR SOME HARSH MEASURE FROM THE GOV'T REGARDING THIS ISSUE? WHAT DO I MEAN BY HARSH? TO GUARANTEE PEOPLE'S FREEDOM, TO GIVE BACK TO THE PEOPLE THEIR RIGHT TO WORK.”
The Prosecutors Office along with the State Fiscal Court signed a document asking for the temporary removal of President #Bolsonaro's power over decisions related to the fight against the #pandemic, and not only the president's, but also the ministers of health's, of state's, of economy's, and others the Fiscal Court views as to have contributed to the chaos caused by the pandemic. In the document, the Vice-President #HamiltonMourao is asked to occupy Bolsonaro's position. Everything about this document is absurd, and it shows, or confirms, something more important than the fact that the deep state is alive and kicking, which is the fact that the vice-president is not on Bolsonaro's side. #mourao
The conservative movement in Brazil has been building a self-damaging relationship with #CNN. #CNNBrasil started its operations during the conservative wave, and since then they have opted for showing little to no bias, but TBB believes this has been a tactic to gain popularity. It never made sense to us that CNN Brazil would have a very different approach to politics compared to CNN International and to CNN in the #UnitedStates, which are actively working against conservatives, against the right. Proof of this self-damaging relationship was recently shown in one of #LucianoHulk's tweet. Hulk is widely famous for his TV shows, has been a strong critic of the #Bolsonaro administration, and considers running for president in 2022. He wrote in his tweet, “BRAZIL WAS ALWAYS ADMIRED BY THE WORLD BECAUSE OF THE HAPPINESS OF ITS PEOPLE. TODAY WE ARE SCARING. HOW SAD! CNN AMERICA SEES US AS A THREAT, A COUNTRY GOING AGAINST PROGRESS WITH A GOV'T THAT HAS UNDERESTIMATED SCIENCE AND VACCINE.” If a Brazilian thinks CNN Brazil is reasonably unbiased, how trustful will any other CNN's opinion be for this person? #conservatives#liberals#fakenews#misinformation#disinformation
About 500 people marched in front of #RioGrandedoSul's gov't building in protest against the lockdown measures. #covid#pandemic
Due to the controversial nullification of former president #Lula's sentence, General Luiz Eduardo Rocha Paiva, member of the gov't's Amnesty Commission, wrote and published a letter on the Military Club's website condemning the action, but although the Armed Forces expressing their disapproval is welcome and help the people feel that they are paying attention and are sharing the same outrage—better late than never—, two parts of the text sound disheartening. In one he wrote, “THE #STF (#SupremeCourt) GAVE A FATAL BLOW TO THE BALANCE OF POWERS, ONE OF THE PILLARS OF THE DEMOCRATIC REGIME AND OF THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL PEACE.” What does 'fatal blow' means here if the military hasn't done anything? Ok, he may be referring to the next one. There should be some action on the next one or the phrase 'fatal blow' will have meant nothing. In another part, in the very beginning, he wrote, “[JUDGE-]MINISTER FACHIN'S DECISION, FREEING LULA FROM HIS SENTENCE, WAS A SLAP ON THE FACE (FORGIVE ME THE EXPRESSION) OF THE BRAZILIAN NATION.” Yes, he apologized for using the expression bofetada, which is a synonym of tapa ('slap'), and which in no way sounds rude or too strong. It's worth remembering Judge-Minister #AlexandredeMoraes hurt the #Constitution badly twice between 2019 and last month, when he, also monocratically, accused, investigated, arrested, judged, and sentenced; first a journalist, and then a congressman. According to the Constitution, #Moraes could have been arrested by President #Bolsonaro, who chose not to.
The population of #AngradosReis, in #RiodeJaneiro, invaded City Hall. They are outraged by the mayor's decision to put a lockdown in place, after he ran in 2020 promising alignment with #Bolsonaro and no more strong restriction measures. A video shows people forcing their way in and one guard trying to keep them out. As they are entering they chant “WE WANT TO WORK!” Angra dos Reis does not have a high #COVID infection or death rate and the excuse the mayor gave was that the country is going through a hard time. #pandemic#lockdown
#JanainaPaschoal, coauthor of former president #DilmaRousseff's impeachment, believes the reason behind judge-minister #Fachin's decision to nullify #Lula's sentence is the fear that even more damning messages leaked from #LavaJato become public. If Fachin's intention was to halt the investigations on the illegal practices in the operation, this was still not fully accomplished as the Superior Justice Court (#STJ) is still willing to proceed with the investigation. #dilma#moro#dallagnol
The republican-like Congresswoman #BiaKicis was elected as president of the Constitution and Justice Commission in Congress. This is a big win for the #Bolsonaro administration. With her and a less partisan president in Congress, #Bolsonaro should see most of his projects at least go for a vote.
After the Department (Ministry) of Culture announced that it will no longer approve money for events that can't happen under a regular planning schedule for any reason, like lockdown or renovation, the Brazilian Lawyers Association (#OAB) issued a letter criticizing the decision, claiming it to contribute for the destruction of culture. Secretary (Minister) #MarioFrias tweeted, “I HAVE A QUESTION: IS OAB DEFENDING OUR CULTURE OR THE PERCENTAGE LAW FIRMS RECEIVE FOR EVERY SINGLE PROJECT THAT'S APPROVED UNDER THE ROUANET LAW?” Law firms receive 15% of the money. OAB has been criticized for it's open leftist political activism. Many people consider it a disgrace for the country, not only for the activism per se, but for the fact that lawyers can't work without their approval and without paying them, even though a lawyer is graduated. OAB seems to be a union disguised as an association, and as with the majority of unions you are forced to pay, they don't need to convince you that it's worth paying them.
One of the judge-ministers of the #SupremeCourt (#STF), #EdsonFachin, in a monocratic decision, nullified the sentence former president #Lula received in four charges, meaning he can no longer even be considered a ex-criminal, and also he's got back all his rights to run for a political position. Fachin always showed support for the left before he was appointed to be judge-minister in 2015 by former president #DilmaRousseff, for whom he recorded a campaign video in her favor in 2010. But, this, per se, still doesn't fully explain his monocratic and outrageous decision. What might be a reason behind it was the imminent arrest of #DeltanDallagnol and #SergioMoro. Lula's sentence's nullification means illegal #LavaJato practices would have no more legal implications. According to a tweet by #Dallagnol, #Fachin's argument for the nullification was that Lula's process should have taken place in #Brasilia, not #Curitiba, due to jurisdiction issues, an opinion Dallagnol disagrees on and writes it had been already discussed by the STF. Coincidentally or not, 2 days prior to Fachin's decision, Lula is reported asking #FernandoHaddad (who ran against #Bolsonaro) if he'd be his vice in a future campaign, and 1 day prior, democrat-like Senator #HumbertoCosta tweeted a picture of Lula at a gym with the text, “YOU BETTER GET READY...” Fachin's decision will be reviewed by the full bench. Some judge-ministers are (allegedly) not Ok by the prospect of seeing #Moro get away with his illegal actions. #haddad
Two videos posted last weekend show the front of #SaoPaulo's mayor, #JoaoDoria, home being heavily secured. In them, we can spot 1 full-size VAN, 15 cars (compact hatches, and small and mid-size SUVs), 8 motorcycles, and at least 23 police officers. Later on the weekend, a group of dozens of people gathered at one corner of his street (that was blocked) to protest the excessive security, the high expenses in propaganda by the state, the strong pandemic measures, and the fact that his son was filmed making a party in one of his dad's companies' buildings where nobody (that was captured in the video) where wearing a mask or were social distancing. According to conservative congressman #GilDiniz, there were at least 250 police officers there. We still don't know the reason why for such security. The video of his son's party immediately got viral and call #Doria's attention, who went there to personally confront the person who posted the images. He starts speaking to her without a mask while pointing his finger at her, and he says she's posting fake videos. He exposed her full name on social media and kept pushing that she posted fake videos, and now she's planning to seek compensation for doxing and false accusation. She's to be heard this Wednesday at the police. #covid#pandemic#fakenews
In #SaoPaulo there is this area were many crack addicts get together to use this and other drugs. It's a skid row, it's called #Cracolandia ('Crackoland'). Despite all the governor's and mayor's virtual signaling, nothing's been done there to prevent agglomeration. You see no police officers dispersing or arresting people there; no social workers, no volunteer doctors and nurses,... #covid#doria
The #SupremeCourt (#STF) already got the majority of the judge-ministers to agree on renewing the power of the states to decide over their health measures regardless of the gov't recommendations. Only one judge-minister hasn't declared his side yet, #KassioNunes, appointed by #Bolsonaro. The president was hopeful that the STF would not renew the states' autonomy. #pandemic
A city called #Guaraciaba, #SantaCatarina, is considering mandating #COVID infected (or suspected) people to wear a wrist band so they can be easily identified and kept from crowding places. If this idea goes ahead, citizens will also be encouraged to inform on people who go out without their wrist band.
The State of #RioGrandedoSul entered phase black until the 21st, and during this time only essential products can be sold on supermarkets. Some widely circulated photos show a supermarket with carts and barricade tapes blocking certain aisles. #covid
#RiodeJaneiro's mayor #EduardoPaes is going for a new #lockdown, and now his order says that bars and restaurants must be closed after 5pm. The association of this kind of business predicts 1 thousand people will be losing their jobs for every week they are closed.
“ESSENTIAL SERVICE IS ANY ONE THAT'S NEEDED FOR THE BREADWINNER OF THE FAMILY TO PUT FOOD ON THE TABLE!” President #Bolsonaro on #Twitter.
The Dept (Ministry) of Education sent a letter to universities saying that political manifestations by professors will result in notifications and can lead to punishments. In response, 25 regional attorneys offices sent a letter to the Citizen Rights' Attorneys Office asking it to reinforce and clarify the need to respect #freedomofexpression, even inside educational institutions and when expressed by faculty members.
The #COVID relief bill was approved by the #Senate, and if the spending doesn't surpass 44 billion reals, it won't be subjected to strict fiscal rules. On the other hand, the gov't was able to add new fiscal regulations for future general spending in this bill. Apparently, the strategy was, “here's 44 billion for you to make your party, as long as this is the last one.” Will it work?
Last year, #Bolsonaro's first reaction to the news of cities and states and companies forcing the vaccination was, “MANDATORY VACCINATION, ONLY OVER MY DEAD BODY!” Now, the gov't is buying a lot of vaccine doses, and it won't take longer until there are enough vaccines for the whole population. Will Bolsonaro still do anything to prevent people from being forced to take the vaccine? #covid
The Attorneys Office of the State of #Goias issued a letter saying that they are for the use of #hydroxychloroquine and #ivermectin for #COVID prevention. Attorneys Offices have been criticized for not expressing or taking too long to express their position regarding this and governors' and mayors' #abuseofpower by sending the police to arrest law-abiding citizens and to shut down businesses.
#SaoPaulo governor #Doria ordered 14 more days of lockdown. His #COVID Contingency Center secretary said that it should be “at least” that number. São Paulo's secretary of health, on the other hand, is not in agreement with Dória's decision and said, “WITH THE LOCKDOWN, PEOPLE WILL DIE OF HUNGER.” In #Bahia, the governor extended the lockdown (and curfew) till April 1st. Regarding to new and to the extending of lockdowns and curfews, #Bolsonaro said, “IF I HAVE THE POWER TO DECIDE, I HAVE MY OWN PLAN AND IT'S READY TO BE PUT IN PLACE, BUT I NEED TO HAVE THIS AUTHORITY. [...] IF THE #SUPREMECOURT (#STF) UNDERSTANDS THAT THE MANAGEMENT OF THIS CAN FALL INTO THE GOV'T'S HANDS, [...] I AM READY TO PUT MY PLAN IN PLACE.” Curiously (and tragically), São Paulo is not increasing the quantity of buses, and train and subway cars in order to allow for proper social distancing.
#Brazil's GDP fell 4.1% during the #pandemic, being the most negative since 1996. The result, though, was better than what the #IPEA predicted (5%), #XPInvestments predicted (6%), the #OECD predicted (6%), and the #IMF predicted (9.1%). Compared to some other countries, Brazil did worse than the #UnitedStates (3.5%), for instance, but less worse than #Japan (4.8%), #Germany (5%), #France (8.2%), the #UnitedKingdom (9.9%), and #Spain (11%). Considering that Brazil has quite a precarious health system, that the #SupremeCourt (#STF) granted the states power to put health measures in place regardless of the gov't'l recommendations—thus leading many states and cities to go for lockdowns—and that many mayors and governors have been antagonizing the president by just doing to opposite in order to wear off #Bolsonaro's image, it did not do that bad. A poll by the media company #JovemPan asking who was the main responsible for this GDP fall—and got 35 thousand votes—shows that 96.8% believe it was mayors' and governors'. #covid#coronavirus
Leftist comedian #DaniloGentili wrote in a tweet, “I WOULD ONLY BELIEVE THIS COUNTRY CAN BE SAVED IF THE POPULATION GOT INTO THE CONGRESS RIGHT NOW AND PUNCHED EVERY CONGRESSPERSON THAT'S DISCUSSING [IN FAVOR OF] THE [SPEECH] IMMUNITY BILL.” Some congresspeople, seeing the chance to put the #SupremeCourt (#STF) on the wall due to its decision to arrest Congressperson #DanielSilveira for a #thoughtcrime, are demanding the STF orders Gentili's arrest. Judge-minister #AlexandredeMoraes, who alone decided for Silveira's arrest, asked the Attorney-General #AugustoAras (appointed by #Bolsonaro) for his word on this matter. Moraes might be trying to dilute his responsibility and raise animosity in Congress, since Aras' support for Gentili's arrest will please some groups in Congress and angry others, and if he goes against it, it will please and anger opposite sides.
A police commissioner who cooperated with the #LavaJato operation was processed and eventually punished when he denounced that some of the Lava Jato investigative tactics were illegal. This commissioner, #MarioFanton, accused the operation of illegally wiretapping and of covering another Lava Jato commissioner, ErikaMarena, who forged a testimony. Marena is one of the responsibles for ordering the illegal wiretappings. And, #DeltanDallagnol, impressed and excited with the popularity #LavaJato commissioners and prosecutors were having, started discussing opening a company to make money giving lectures. In one of the leaked messages he wrote, “LET'S ORGANIZE CONFERENCES AND EVENTS, OK? THIS IS A GOOD WAY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR NETWORKING AND VISIBILITY.” [...] “BEFORE TAKING STEPS TO OPEN THIS COMPANY, WE SHOULD HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN AND A CLEAR VIEW OF EACH ONE'S EXPECTATIONS. FOR THE BUSINESS PLAN, WE SHOULD LOOK UP FOR THE LATEST EVENTS AND PRICES.” In another part, he explains that they'd better set up their company as an NGO institution and have a professional company organize the events and charge for the lectures, so they could receive the money in a different way, thus avoiding legal questionings and the negative repercussion with the public.