Ricardo Vélez Rodríguez – Professor Emeritus of the Command and General Staff School of the Brazilian Army, former Minister of Education of the Brazil
With the awareness that he is the purest soul in the country, Lula He spoke out at the reception he offered, at the beginning of May, to the Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, during his visit to Brazil. According to the press recorded on video of the president’s speech, Brazil has perfect conditions to be among the six largest economies in the world. What are the reasons that support Lulista’s hopes? Lula responds: “We have legal credibility, fiscal credibility, economic credibility and predictability.” All that, exactly. According to Lula da Silva, Brazilians have the prerequisites for their country to be a great power.
How nice it would be if all those things were true. The problem is that, for Lula, there is an insurmountable contradiction. She is tired of talking to the members of her political union, the Workers’ Party, that everything, in the field of politics, is built through lies repeated systematically and with conviction. Lie, lie, lie, everyone will believe her lie. It’s a case of inflated lying superego. Everything can be possible, just want it. The problem is that, since the lie was elevated to the level of supreme truth, things remain confused. There is no way to believe what Lula says. The most civilized attitude would be that malicious smile, of general disbelief in everything he heard and of comic surprise in the face of so much impudence, that the Japanese Prime Minister rehearsed at the end of Lula’s speech. It could not be otherwise. Lula cannot be taken seriously.
It would be comical if it weren’t tragic. Because we are being governed in Brazil precisely by that contumacious liar. There is no “Marshall Plan” that will save the brave gauchos, punished by the most serious natural tragedy that struck the State of Rio Grande do Sul. Lula, who usually passes encrypted messages when he decides to pose as a communicator, put on the well-known glasses dark-rimmed when, wearing a cap, he went to visit Puerto Alegre, in recent days. He seemed like a dedicated researcher who put aside his own instruments in the laboratory to face the misfortunes of others. So much tragedy, in the case of Sulrio Grande, could only be visited with dark-rimmed glasses, so sad were the scenes that the president witnessed.
But solidarity did not go beyond that point and generic promises that the public power will do everything necessary to help the Rio Grande do Sul. The PT is the PT, that is, the party that governs for itself, forgetting the citizens. Out of sheer official apathy, the federal tax office had the audacity to fine (“for transporting excess merchandise”) the volunteer drivers of trucks carrying medicines and basic necessities, donated by citizens of neighboring states, when they went to enter the State of Rio Grande do Sul. And the communications minister threatened police inquiries against those who criticized the actions of the Lula government in the area affected by the climate disaster. Lula, on the other hand, made the audacity of rejecting the humanitarian aid offered by the neighboring country, Uruguay, whose government ordered a military plane to carry essential items for those affected by the flood. A terrible example of lack of civility and friendship with a country that, despite having a moderate leftist regime, made strong criticisms of Brazil in international forums for giving its unconditional support to the Venezuelan dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
Data released by economist Carlos Alexandre da Costa (former special secretary for the acceleration of the economy under Bolsonaro) reveals that it is not worth thinking about a “Marshall Plan” to save the Rio Grande do Sul. This state pays the government central 105 billion reais annually, as interest on the public debt with the Federation. In compensation, it receives only 30 billion in transfers. The Union spends 25 billion more than the amount paid by the Rio Grande do Sul. Of the remaining 50 billion, Lula does not even think about postponing at least the payment of the multimillion-dollar interest. 11 billion go to other States of the Federation, 8 are destined to cover the Social Security deficit and 31 billion more go to Brasilia. In other words: it would be better if Rio Grande do Sul resolved its problems on its own, without having to pay the Union the exorbitant amount of 105 billion.
Without taming the monster of the Patrimonial State that charges everyone and benefits few, there is no possible solution to the extreme problems that gauchos suffer in Rio Grande do Sul, in these times of uncontrolled climate. The effort to rationalize spending should begin with the federal machine itself, which spends billions without any shame. The first example should be given by Brasilia. Enough of exorbitant salary increases for senior officials of the Judiciary. Enough of “judicial tourism” in very expensive conferences given by the dedicated judges of the Supreme Federal Court in London or Paris, paid for with accommodation in 5-star hotels by companies that have pending lawsuits with Justice at its highest level. That is an immortality that screams to the heavens. Making speeches about the rosy future that the current rulers paint for foreign eyes is a slap in the face of those who pay taxes and constitutes a megalomaniacal narrative that reaches the borders of ridiculous. The scene would be comical if it were not tragic.
