President Jair Bolsonaro, without a mask, at a rally in Sao Paulo on June 13, 2021. – Fotoarena / Sipa USA
If the amount payable for Jair Bolsonaro is low, the symbol is very strong. The president of Brazil was fined $ 108 on Saturday for participating in a demonstration without a mask or sanitary measures.
Thousands of motorcyclists took part in the “Accelerate for Christ” rally in Sao Paulo on Saturday. The far-right president led the procession with an open helmet and no mask, in violation of state regulations.
Strong opposition with the governor of Sao Paulo
Sao Paulo state authorities said they fined Jair Bolsonaro, his son Eduardo, a congressman, and Minister of Infrastructure Tarcisio Gomes, 552 reais (about $ 108) for failing to not to have worn a mask and not to have respected the measures of social distancing during the rally. Jair Bolsonaro, who called for rallies across Brazil ahead of next year’s presidential election, ignored warnings from Sao Paulo governor Joao Doria, a political rival, who said that the president would be fined if he did not obey state laws.
The president has repeatedly opposed Joao Doria and other governors over measures imposed to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic, which has claimed nearly 485,000 lives in Brazil. He regularly criticizes containment measures and the wearing of masks, and promotes drugs such as chloroquine, as studies show they are ineffective.
A president against wearing a mask
On Saturday, addressing a crowd of flag-waving supporters, Jair Bolsonaro again spoke out against wearing the mask. He felt that people who have been vaccinated should not have to wear the mask. “It is impossible for a vaccinated person to transmit the virus,” he said. There is, however, no scientific consensus on whether people vaccinated can be contagious.