Bolsonaro opted for the path of electoral manipulation by changing the name of Bolsa Família, says Mello Franco.

247 - The journalist Bernardo Mello Franco In his column in the newspaper O Globo, he highlights that Jair Bolsonaro has gone from a fierce critic to a defender of the Bolsa Família program, created during the government of then-President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. “Now he intends to rename the program. The new name will be Renda Brasil,” says Mello Franco. “The change has a clear objective: Bolsonaro wants to appropriate a platform associated with the opposition. He could do this by improving the program and expanding the number of beneficiaries. He preferred the easy path of electoral manipulation,” he states. 

“The last few months have taught the government that helping the poor is not just a humanitarian action. Thanks to the emergency aid of R$ 600, Bolsonaro has regained popularity at the base of the social pyramid. This compensated for part of his decline among the middle class, irritated by the federal government's disregard for the pandemic,” he assesses.

“Guedes revealed that the coronavirus had another use. “We learned that there were 38 million invisible Brazilians,” he said, referring to the people who registered to receive the aid. At 70 years old, the economist seems to have discovered the existence of the poor. Even so, the government is still betrayed by its instincts,” he adds.

“Last Thursday, the Ministry of Economy transferred R$ 83,9 million from the Bolsa Família program to the Secretariat of Communication. The social funds were to be squandered on advertising. Yesterday, the ministry was forced to backtrack. Not because of the absurdity of the idea, but to avoid problems with the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Federal Court of Accounts,” concludes Mello Franco.