National and Global Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic by A. S. Bhalla

Author:A. S. Bhalla
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9783031295218
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland

Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil)

Bolsonaro, dubbed as “Trump of the Tropics,” downplayed the pandemic and questioned its very existence when he stated: “It’s just a little dose of flu … we are going to face the virus like a man, dammit, not like a little boy.” An ideologue full of hubris, his Macho instinct and right-wing political credentials undermined the efforts of his own government’s fight against the pandemic. Twice he threatened to fire his health minister, who was far more popular for the management of the health crisis. Two resigned in quick succession for disagreeing with the president over the right strategy to control the pandemic.

He clashed with provincial governors over reopening of the economy. His call for reopening churches contradicted scientists’ recommendations. He also mounted a legal challenge to governors’ quarantine orders (Blasberg, 2021).

Bolsonaro opposed vaccination and sowed doubts about it in people’s minds (The Economist, 2021c). His indifference to the gravity of the pandemic in the face of new variants (e.g. Gamma which originated in Brazil), lack of empathy and disdain for public health restrictions are strikingly similar to that of Trump. His messaging and communications were also mixed and contradictory (Melo, 2020; The Economist, 2021a, March 27). He attended mass rallies of his supporters despite having been tested positive of the virus. His words and speeches influenced his followers’ behaviour in defying the public health restrictions. A study (using a social distancing index at the municipal level) shows that Bolsonaro strongly influenced his supporters in many localities against compliance with social distancing measures (Ajzenman et al., 2020).

Bolsonaro’s popularity plummeted following continued mishandling of COVID-19, supreme investigations of corruption and calls for his impeachment. In October 2021, a Brazilian Senate committee charged him for crimes against humanity for mishandling COVID-19, for causing more than 300,000 deaths through opposition to public health measures such as vaccination and mask wearing and for promoting ineffective drugs like hydroxychloroquine. According to polls by the Datafolha Institute, in July 2021, his disapproval rating rose to 51 per cent ahead of the 2022 elections, which he lost (The Economist, 2021b, October 23).

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