A consolidated polarization

With eight months to go until the presidential elections, the scenario points to a consolidated polarization between Lula and Bolsonaro. The third option remains without a program, without unity, without any leader capable of competitively contesting the elections.

Faced with crumbling popular support for his government and increasing rejection of his name, Bolsonaro has been attempting, since the end of last year, a series of initiatives aimed at the upcoming October election. However, important measures such as the 10% increase in the minimum wage, the R$ 400 emergency aid, which is nothing more than a worsened version of Bolsa Família, and the Vale Gás program, an initiative of the PT caucus, have had no impact on voting intention polls.

The truth is that vaccine denialism, the resurgence of the pandemic, complete mismanagement, economic stagnation, double-digit inflation, rising cost of living – especially the cost of food, fuel and energy – and interest rates, which are among the highest in developed economies, leave little room for Bolsonaro to present a relevant economic improvement for the electoral contest. 

On the other hand, Lula continues to build a strategic agenda for the country and sets the agenda for far-reaching issues. The first, as revealed by the former president's recent trips abroad, is Brazil's integration into the world and Lula's ability to lift Brazil out of the international pariah status created by Bolsonaro. Another point is labor reform, the restoration of rights, and the reconstruction of unions and collective bargaining mechanisms, as recently approved by the Spanish government. 

Furthermore, Lula has highlighted the importance of Petrobras for national sovereignty and development in the face of the dismantling of a company that discovered the largest oil reserves of the last 50 years. Petrobras has been dismembered and is now held hostage by 400 importers, who import up to 1/3 of the consumption of some derivatives, imposing a policy of dollarization of prices. 

The country needs to resume a strategic policy for Petrobras focused on investment in refining and an integrated system of production, distribution, and marketing that generates gains and competitiveness in relation to other economies. After our governments, Petrobras became an exporter of crude oil and an importer of finished products, strongly impacting inflation and the cost of living.

Another issue is the dismantling of the Ministry of Agrarian Development (MDA) and the end of policies supporting family farming. The dismantling of the National Program for Strengthening Family Farming (Pronaf) and the Food Acquisition Program (PAA) has compromised the planted area of ​​basic products such as rice, beans, and cassava. Furthermore, the end of regulatory stocks increases pressure on food costs and exacerbates hunger. 

Not to mention the dismantling of the BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank), the absence of a policy for the reindustrialization of the country and the lack of support for science, technology, and innovation. The deforestation policy of the Bolsonaro administration is generating profound isolation for Brazil in the concert of nations. According to Ipam (Amazon Research Institute), there was an explosion of deforestation on federal public lands in the Amazon during the Bolsonaro government. From 2019 to 2021, more than 32 km² of forest were devastated, 21 times the size of the city of São Paulo. 

The fact is that the one who has a legacy that promises a future, experienced figures in management and in formulating an accurate diagnosis of the great challenges ahead, who opposes all this Bolsonaro-style barbarity and who is the hope of the people, is former President Lula. That is why Lula leads all the polls and is expanding alliances for the reconstruction of Brazil.

Our great challenge now is to organize the pro-Lula popular committees and move forward in forming a party federation with the PCdoB, the PSB, and the PV. Following that, there will be the presentation of the government program and the implementation of a campaign that mobilizes, that excites, that inspires, and that allows hope to defeat hatred, as it defeated fear in the past.