In São Paulo, Meirelles avoids defending Temer.
During an event in São Paulo, Henrique Meirelles, the MDB's pre-candidate for President of the Republic, once again avoided defending Michel Temer, the president with the highest disapproval rating in the country's political history; instead, the former Minister of Finance said that he defends and cites what has been done, such as "the recovery of the Brazilian economy, all the reforms that are being made and all those that are underway."
(Reuters) - Henrique Meirelles, the MDB's pre-candidate for President of the Republic, once again praised the legacy of President Michel Temer's government, in which he served as Minister of Finance, but avoided defending the president himself.
Asked whether he sees the need to distance himself politically from Temer in order for his candidacy to "take off," Meirelles said that there are two distinct issues and people often mix them up.
"I was Minister of Finance, I defend and cite what was done, I defend the recovery of the Brazilian economy, all the reforms that are being made and all those that are underway," Meirelles explained to journalists after an event in São Paulo where he cited achievements such as the State-Owned Enterprises Governance Law, the labor reform, the high school reform, among others.
"Regarding his legal defense, he (Temer) is a renowned and capable jurist, he has highly competent lawyers, it's not my area of expertise, but he is presenting his defenses and that's another matter," the former minister stated.
MDB Convention
To run for president, Meirelles will need to overcome another challenge within his own party: confirmation of his candidacy at the convention.
The former minister sought to express optimism about this. According to him, most members of the MDB party support the idea of an MDB candidate for the presidency, and that he should be that candidate.
"The only doubt we have is the size of the victory; we want to have a resounding victory (at the convention), a victory in which there is great unity within the party. I have no doubt that we will win the convention," said Meirelles.
When asked about the position of Senator Renan Calheiros (MDB-AL), who declared his support for the candidacy of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in a video, and who claims that Meirelles will not be approved by the MDB, the former minister said he respects the opinion, but that this will not change the outcome of the convention.
"It's his opinion, it's a legitimate opinion, but he's wrong. We will have a great victory at the convention and I already have concrete evidence of this from all over the country," he said.