Friday December 30, 2022 | 10:11 p.m.
Two days after the end of his government, President Jair Bolsonaro left Brazil this Friday for Orlando (United States) before the inauguration of his successor, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, thus confirming that on Sunday he will not transfer the presidential band, during the ceremony of change of democratic authorities.
“I’m already in flight, I’ll be back shortly,” he told the CNN news channel on board the Air Force plane, hours after saying goodbye through a live stream he made on his social networks.
The outgoing president is expected to spend at least a month outside the country and, although the government did not provide any information about the trip or who will accompany him, it is already a fact that the vice president, Hamilton Mourão, was left in charge of the presidency starting this Friday afternoon.
Bolsonaro and an uncertain future
The future of the outgoing president of Brazil is still uncertain, with an exit abroad before leaving office and various cases against him that could complicate his political career.
The Brazilian Superior Electoral Court (STE) has already applied a million-dollar fine for “bad faith” to the Liberal Party (PL) by rejecting a claim to review almost 50% of the ballot boxes in which Lula da Silva won.
“It is clear that Bolsonaro is leaving the country due to the legal risk he is running. Even this week, a new investigation by the police came to light, accusing him of recording a video in which he linked the Covid vaccination with the development of HIV. He could be sued for this type of problem,” Brazilian political scientist Claudio Couto told Télam before his departure was confirmed.
Leaving the Palacio de la Alvorada for the last time, Bolsonaro used a side exit to avoid the press. Strictly speaking, he almost never left the main door of the place that was his residence during the four years that he was in office.
Earlier, he had made a live broadcast where he took stock of his government, but avoided mentioning the trip. Despite that, he spoke in a farewell tone, concluding that “it was hard to remain silent for two months.”
