Status: 02.10.2022 08:39 a.m
Brazil’s ex-president Lula has a good chance of replacing current President Bolsonaro. Although Lula spent a year and a half in prison for corruption, many Brazilians think he is the better choice.
These days, Maria de Jesus Oliveira usually walks through her restaurant with a smile. The 68-year-old – nicknamed “Tia Zélia” – is hoping for an election victory for leftist ex-president Lula da Silva. In polls, he is well ahead of right-wing incumbent Jair Bolsonaro. Tia Zélia’s entire restaurant is filled with Lula memorabilia: rag dolls, photos and cardboard cutouts. She’s been considered one of the country’s most famous Lula admirers since she opened her restaurant in central Brasilia many years ago.
At that time she had come to the capital from the small town of Buritirama in the poor north-east and initially worked as a chambermaid. She later sold homemade food to construction workers and later opened her own restaurant. There she met the then President Lula da Silva for the first time, who – like Tia Zélia – had also fled from the Northeast and had worked his way up. Lula was particularly fond of Tia Zélia’s oxtail dish.
She sees Lula’s reign positively: “As president, Lula once called the mayor of my home village personally. 40 days later, my family was finally connected to the electricity and water networks.”
Born into humble circumstances
Luiz Inácio da Silva – known as “Lula” – had previously made an unprecedented rise: Born into humble circumstances, he rose as a union leader and gained national fame in the fight against the military dictatorship. After three unsuccessful attempts, he was elected president in 2002. He laid social programs up and lifted millions out of poverty.
Now his supporters in the election campaign are hoping for a comeback from the man with the gray beard. Many supporters remember his successful presidency when he achieved extremely high approval ratings. “Thanks to Lula, four of my family members were able to study,” explains Generosa de Jesus at a Lula performance in front of supporters of an evangelical free church.
Visiting strictly religious voters is part of Lula’s strategy to ensnare political opponents. He always emphasizes that he supports religious freedom and criticizes Bolsonaro for abusing Jesus for political election campaigns. And, of course, Lula also praises his social policies. “Before my first term in office, you hardly saw any black people in universities – as if these places were only for the wealthy white elite. Today, on the other hand, half of every university is black.”
The other side of the Lula
In addition to Lula’s undoubted merits, there is another side. The massive criticism that he has recently received has its origins in the corruption scandals that were uncovered in his government. Entrepreneurs and politicians throughout his government alliance had evaded billions for years. An unprecedented scandal that caused an outcry in Brazil. Lula herself has always denied personal enrichment. However, he was arrested in 2018. The accusation: bribery. After more than a year and a half in prison, he was released on formal grounds and regained his political rights.
In retrospect, Lula’s relationship to corruption is contradictory. On the one hand, numerous of his former political allies have been proven corrupt and a structural corruption network has been uncovered during his tenure. At the same time, Lula has demonstrably strengthened the structures of state investigative authorities. He himself yells at his supporters on stage: “I have never obstructed the public prosecutor’s office. Unlike Bolsonaro, I have never interfered because I stand up for an independent public prosecutor’s office.”
Celebrity endorsement
The fact that Lula could become president again despite the lack of a clean record is probably also due to Bolsonaro’s pandemic policy. Its corona management was catastrophic, Lula criticized ARD-Interview. “Bolsonaro should have bought vaccines much earlier. In addition, a commission of inquiry has revealed that there was corruption in the purchase of the vaccines.”
Now Lula has forged numerous alliances. He gathered celebrities, influencers and artists in São Paulo for an event that was named “LulaPalooza” after the famous Lolapalooza music festival on social networks. The celebrities should help undecided vote for Lula. In July, Anitta, the world’s most listened to Brazilian singer, declared her support for Lula.
He landed his latest coup at a dinner with the corporate world. To win over conservative voters, he met entrepreneurs previously associated with Bolsonaro. He assured big business that his government would not take any economic measures that could unsettle the productive sector.