Lula rules out announcing his cabinet before winning the election and says he will invite "people from outside."
Economists historically linked to the PSDB party and respected by the market, Armínio Fraga, Edmar Bacha, Pedro Malan, and Persio Arida, released a statement declaring their vote for Lula.
(Reuters)- Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) stated this Thursday that it would be madness to announce the members of a potential cabinet before winning the election for the Planalto Palace, and promised to include "outsiders" in his cabinet should he defeat current president and reelection candidate Jair Bolsonaro (PL) in the second round of the election.
Lula said that announcing the names of potential ministers before the election results would mean upsetting allies who would be left out, and stressed that when he first became President in 2003, he appointed ministers who were not from his support base, such as Roberto Rodrigues (Agriculture) and Henrique Meirelles (Central Bank).
"I will form the government not only with my party and my allies here. There will be people from outside who will participate. And I am happy when I see important economists, economists who worked with Fernando Henrique Cardoso, who worked with Temer, who worked with Sarney, dedicating their vote to my candidacy," Lula said in a press conference after receiving the support of PSD politicians.
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Earlier this Thursday, economists historically linked to the PSDB party and respected by the market, Armínio Fraga, Edmar Bacha, Pedro Malan, and Persio Arida, released a statement declaring their vote for Lula.
As Lula's running mate for vice-president, former governor Geraldo Alckmin (PSB) was one of those responsible for making overtures to the center during the campaign, helping to consolidate the support of these economists. Among the endorsements received in recent weeks is also that of former Central Bank president and former Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles.
In the press conference, Lula also reiterated his criticism of the public spending cap, saying that the instrument was created "to guarantee the money of bankers" at the expense of investments in health and education.
"I want to guarantee the money for social policy. It's the money for rice, beans, meat, onions, tomatoes, and a liter of milk. That's why we're going to have a lot of fiscal responsibility, social responsibility, and responsibility to Brazil," he stated, recalling that during his time in government, Brazil always achieved a primary surplus.
"Fiscal responsibility doesn't have to be in the law, it has to be the responsibility of the leader," he added.
In a statement released this Thursday, the coordination of the Workers' Party candidate's government program reaffirmed "President Lula's commitment to building a new fiscal regime that has credibility, predictability, and sustainability." According to the campaign, the spending cap will be revoked, after having lost "all credibility with Bolsonaro."
NO LETTERS
When questioned about the growing importance of religion in the election campaign, Lula reiterated that he is religious and that faith cannot be trivialized in politics. He affirmed that he treats all religions with respect, but repeated that he sees no need to write a letter specifically for evangelicals.
"I don't need to be accountable because people know me... otherwise I'd have to write letters to 500 different sectors of society," he stated.
This week, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) ordered six network provider companies to remove posts that attempt to link the former president to Satanism, which are considered fake news.
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