Dilma promises artists the use of pre-salt oil in culture.
A group of intellectuals and artists repeated their 2010 event, filling the Oi Casagrande Theater in Rio de Janeiro's South Zone in support of Dilma Rousseff's reelection campaign; figures such as Leonardo Boff, Marilena Chauí, Elza Soares, Otto, Alcione, and Beth Carvalho were present. "We will place Culture within our economic growth strategy," said the president; she reminded attendees that pre-salt resources will guarantee investments in education and culture, and stated that there is no "alchemy or miracle" that will make education evolve: "we have to pay teachers well and demand that they stay in the classroom"; she also affirmed that the relative lack of awareness about the wealth represented by the pre-salt has as one of its origins the "militant pessimism" of the Brazilian press.
247 – Repeating an act from 2010, a group of intellectuals, scientists, social and religious leaders, politicians, and artists filled the Oi Casagrande Theater in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro, alongside former president Lula, in support of Dilma Rousseff's candidacy for the presidency.
The event was attended by figures such as Leonardo Boff, Chico César, and Marilena Chauí, as well as Elza Soares, Otto, Alcione, and Beth Carvalho. Outside, more than a thousand people watched the event, which lasted about three hours.
In her speech, Dilma observed: "Of all those who supported me in 2010, the vast majority are back here, thank you very much. When I was here in 2010, it was already the second round, I felt that we were going to win the election and we did."
“We will not go backwards, and we will do so by investing in quality education for all, and by placing culture at the heart of our economic growth and development strategy. We don't just want infrastructure projects, we want utopias. We don't just want material advantages, we want to understand each other. We will place Culture at the heart of our economic growth strategy,” he added.
The president reminded everyone that the pre-salt oil revenues will guarantee investments in education and culture, and said that there is no "alchemy or miracle" that will make education evolve: we have to pay teachers well and demand that they stay in the classroom.
"Militant pessimism" of the press
Dilma also stated that the relative lack of awareness about the wealth represented by the pre-salt reserves stems, in part, from the "militant pessimism" of the Brazilian press, after Lula advocated for the approval of a regulatory framework for the communications sector in the country.
"Today, the level of awareness that Brazil has about the oil that comes from the pre-salt layer is very low, partly due to the systematic misinformation and militant pessimism that thrives and, as we know, is characteristic of the way information is transmitted in the Brazilian press," said Dilma.
Dilma also expressed discomfort with media coverage when speaking about the investigation of corruption cases during her government, saying that "what is wrong in Brazil is the unnecessary exposure of people without certainty of their guilt."
The president referred to the corruption allegations that came to light after the leak of testimonies given by former Petrobras director Paulo Roberto Costa to the Federal Police, under a plea bargain agreement, which allegedly revealed a scheme to embezzle funds involving the state-owned company and politicians from the allied base.
In a speech before the president, Lula harshly criticized the political coverage done by the press and, recalling the national communication conferences held during his government, defended the approval of a new legal framework for the sector.
"The regulatory framework for communications is a necessity in this country... What is not possible is for state concessions to behave as they do," Lula stated (Reuters).