Dilma: "I fight wrongdoing, but it's not the central objective."
In an interview with a radio station in São José do Rio Preto (SP), the president also commented on the economic crisis and acknowledged that Brazil could be affected.
President Dilma Rousseff stated this morning that the federal government will continue to combat "wrongdoings" within the public administration and emphasized that the allied base in the National Congress also disagrees with the existence of irregularities in the federal administration. In an interview given to Rádio Metrópole AM, from São José do Rio Preto (SP), the president denied, however, that the objective of her administration is solely to combat corruption.
"Wherever there are problems of corruption, we are obliged to take action. I don't make this a central objective of my government," he stressed. "My government will continue to combat all wrongdoing. Now, my government and the Brazilian people also dislike injustice," he emphasized.
The president reiterated her defense of the presumption of innocence and emphasized that the federal government respects individual rights and human dignity. She also commented on a report published today by the British magazine "The Economist," according to which the "clean-up" being carried out by the president in the Esplanade of Ministries could cause her problems in the National Congress.
"Brazil is important enough today for foreign magazines to be concerned about us. That's a great sign," he stated. "Now, unfortunately, foreign magazines don't understand much about political customs in Brazil," he added.
Dilma was at the Parque Residencial Nova Esperança housing development in São José do Rio Preto today for the handover of 1.993 housing units from the Minha Casa, Minha Vida (My House, My Life) program. According to the Ministry of Cities, the investment is R$ 87.28 million, and the homes will be allocated to families with a monthly income of up to R$ 1.600. Also participating in the ceremony were the governor of São Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin (SP), and regional authorities.
Economic crisis
During the interview, Dilma also acknowledged that the global crisis could affect the Brazilian economy, but stated that the federal government is currently working to prevent the global scenario from contaminating national economic activity. The president stressed that the country is not immune to global turbulence and admitted there are difficulties in dealing with the effects of the global slowdown. "What we are trying to do this year is not even enter (the crisis), but stop it at the door. Is it difficult? Yes, it is difficult, we are not immune, an island," she stated.
Dilma recalled that, in 2009, the Brazilian economy suffered the effects of the global financial crisis, aggravated by the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. "It's obvious that (the crisis) has an effect. In 2009, we took all the necessary measures. Brazil entered the crisis, so much so that we had a drop in GDP (Gross Domestic Product). But soon after, we entered 2009 and emerged (from the crisis) in 2010," she stated. "It's important to ensure that at this moment we manage to contain the perverse effects of a crisis that we did not create and that could affect Brazil," she said. The president also defended increased employment as one of the mechanisms for the country to resist the effects of the current global crisis.
Dilma was at the Parque Residencial Nova Esperança housing development in São José do Rio Preto today for the handover of 1.993 housing units from the Minha Casa, Minha Vida (My House, My Life) program. According to the Ministry of Cities, the investment is R$ 87.28 million, and the homes will be allocated to families with a monthly income of up to R$ 1.600. The governor of São Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin (SP), and other regional authorities also participated in the ceremony.