the leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva prepares to assume this Sunday for the third time the presidency of brazilbefore hundreds of thousands of supporters and almost twenty foreign heads of state, in the midst of reinforced security after a frustrated bomb attack.
However, his predecessor, the far-right Jair Bolsonarocalled to pass him the presidential sash, left this Friday for USAaccording to the local press.
The official newspaper reported a trip to Florida until January 30.
Some 300,000 people are expected in the quiet capital Brasilia to see the institutional acts up close and attend a mega-concert with the most varied of Brazilian music, already dubbed “Lulapalooza” on social networks.
Lula He will be officially proclaimed president of the South American giant for the third time together with his vice president, Geraldo Alckmin, in a ceremony in Congress.
But the most anticipated moment for his followers will be when the 77-year-old political veteran, who says he will lead the country with “the energy of a 30-year-old and the desire of a 20-year-old,” climbs the access ramp to the Planalto Palacepresidential seat and jewel of the architect Oscar Niemeyer.
There he must deliver a speech before the thousands present.
Around all the events there will be an unprecedented security operation, with the main avenues surrounding the Congress and the Planalto closed.
Brasilia will mobilize “100%” of its police for the assumption of Lulawhich could involve up to 8,000 agents, their authorities announced.
The Federal Police alone will employ more than a thousand officials in “intelligence and security” tasks, the largest contingent so far in an investiture, according to this force.
And the carrying of weapons for various categories of civilians will be prohibited in Brasilia, by order of justice.
Bolsonaro leaves Brazil
On the Planalto ramp, Lula he will receive the presidential sash, a green and yellow silk ribbon embroidered in gold and diamonds. Normally the new head of state receives it from his predecessor.
But Bolsonaro He left for the United States on Friday, according to the local press. No Brazilian president has been absent from the inauguration ceremony of his successor since 1985.
After his defeat in October, the president authorized the start of the government transition but did not publicly acknowledge Lula’s victory by 50.9% to 49.1% of the vote, remaining practically silent.
Another tradition is still in doubt: the parade of the new president before the public in a black convertible Rolls Royce, amid voices asking, for greater security, to use an armored car.
Although the next Minister of Security, Flávio Dino, said that the decision will be made “at the right time”, the rehearsals of the ceremony this Friday used the Rolls Royce.
Preparations for the inauguration were shaken this week after authorities detained a Bolsonaro supporter for planting an explosive near the Brasilia airport on Christmas Eve with the aim of “causing chaos,” provoking the intervention of the Armed Forces and thus avoid the assumption of Lula.
Since the runoff on October 30, in which Bolsonaro lost, hundreds of his supporters have mobilized in various cities to reject the result at the polls and call for military intervention. On December 12, some of them set vehicles on fire and clashed with the police in Brasilia.
massive party
At least 65 high-level foreign delegations, including nearly twenty heads of state and government, will be present at the inauguration ceremony, the largest international presence in history, according to organizers.
Among them will be the leaders of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Honduras and Uruguay, as well as the King of Spain.
Washington will send the Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, the first indigenous person to form a cabinet in the United States and a harsh critic of Bolsonaro, while Vice President Wang Qishan will attend on behalf of China.
The epicenter of the festivities will be the Esplanade of the Ministries, a large green area, usually deserted, surrounded by government buildings and Congress.
There will be two huge stages decorated with the colors of the Brazilian flag, where more than 60 artists will perform in some thirty concerts.
“We will have a great popular party”, promised the future first lady, Rosángela da Silva, known as “Janja”, who organizes this “Festival of the Future” in detail.
Musical numbers include pop stars like drag queen Pabllo Vittar and samba legends like Martinho da Vila.
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