Bloomberg
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro criticised lockdown measures by governors even as the nation turned into a global epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Health Ministry on May 10 reported 162,699 total cases of Covid-19 and 11,123 deaths, among the world’s highest.
“The head of household has to stay at home going hungry with their family,†Bolsonaro said in a tweet attacking the lockdown in Maranhao state. “Millions already feel like they are living in Venezuela.â€
The president said he plans to declare more jobs as essential in an effort to get Brazilians back to work, adding that “since they [the governors] don’t want to open, we [the federal government] will.â€
Bolsonaro seems ready to blame the looming economic recession on quarantine measures taken by state governors, a strategy that may prove risky in the face of rising Covid-19 deaths.
Since the pandemic began, the leader has already lost two ministers and is currently facing a ballooning political crisis as well.