Even the spokesperson is a general: militarization underway in the Bolsonaro government.
"Under the military governments, which are not missed by democrats, spokespeople and press secretaries were usually civilians. They were chosen from among journalists or diplomats," says Ricardo Kotscho, of Journalists for Democracy; "Now, in a democratically elected government, we will have as spokesperson an active-duty three-star general, Otávio Santana do Rêgo Barros, who until now was head of Social Communication for the Army," he reinforces; "The government needs to define a civilized communication policy to guide its relationship with society, the press, and professionals in the field."
By Ricardo Kotscho, for Balaio do Kotscho and for Journalists for Democracy
During the military governments, which are not missed by democrats, spokespeople and press secretaries were usually civilians. They were chosen from among journalists or diplomats.
This was also the case in the governments following the redemocratization.
To give you an idea, the press secretary for General Costa e Silva, the one who signed the AI-5 decree, was my friend Carlos Chagas, a highly respected journalist and political commentator for the country's main newspapers and TV channels.
It's true that we also had Alexandre Garcia, the former Globo employee, as spokesperson for General João Figueiredo.
Now, in a democratically elected government, we will have as our spokesperson an active-duty three-star general, Otávio Santana do Rêgo Barros, who until now was the head of Social Communication for the Army.
In the first weeks of the new government, this role was played by General Augusto Heleno, head of the GSI (Institutional Security Office), who sought to interpret and correct the statements of Captain Bolsonaro.
The Chief of Staff, Ony Lorenzoni, who sees the same danger in a pistol and a blender, was also trying to fill this empty space.
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With General Barros, there are now seven military ministers, in addition to two in charge of state-owned companies.
I don't recall ever seeing so many uniformed men at the Palácio do Planalto during any of the military dictatorship governments.
Given this prominent role of the military, Carlos Alberto dos Santos Cruz, also a general and Minister of the Government Secretariat, said he saw "neither advantage nor disadvantage" in an administration with so many members of the Armed Forces.
"I don't see anything special about the role of the military; there's nothing special about being in the military and having a different function."
Santos Cruz is right when he says that these military officers have characteristics such as "honesty, dedication and integrity," in addition to excellent professional training, something that cannot be said of most of the civilian ministers appointed by Bolsonaro.
Led by a captain who retired at age 33 and, after facing problems in the Army, became a professional congressman, this hybrid civil-military government was indeed in need of a spokesperson, not necessarily a general, to restore order.
More than that, however, the government needs to define a civilized communication policy to guide its relationship with society, the press, and professionals in the field.
From personal experience, I know that reconciling the interests of the government and journalists, who are always seeking news about what is happening in power, is no small challenge.
Based on his initial statements, however, the general spokesperson intends to prioritize the "new media" formed by the social networks of Bolsonaro's supporters, as the president himself has been doing, under the guidance of his son Carlos, whom he calls "my pitbull."
Life goes on.
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* This is an opinion article, the responsibility of the author, and does not reflect the opinion of Brasil 247.