Jair Bolsonaro presents his “benefits package” in the middle of the re-election campaign

Millions of Brazilians – and probably the image of President Jair Bolsonaro, in full campaign for his re-election – will benefit from a measure approved by the Brazilian Congress that collect subsidies for the poor when there are less than three months to go to the elections.

On Wednesday the Plenary of the Chamber of Deputies approved the Proposal for a Constitutional Amendment (PEC) with 459 votes in favor, 17 against and 2 abstentions, which increases the Aid by 50%, from 400 reais to 600 reais (from about 80 to 120 dollars) Brazil, a monthly subsidy for about 50 million humble people.

The text that decrees the “state of emergency” to circumvent the electoral law. The government will pay out more than 41,000 million reais (about $ 7.6 trillion) in measures that will be in effect until December of this year.

Since the law had already been approved in the Senate, the government was able to do so with this vote his most ambitious parliamentary goal of the yearthe approval of the so-called “PEC of the benefits”.

This PEC that also increases the gas voucher for low-income families and creates a payment of one thousand reais ($ 200) for truckers as compensation for losses due to the increase in diesel.

“Kamikaze”

The project approved by the deputies this Wednesday was harshly criticized by several analysts, who came to call it “PEC Kamikaze”, due to the risk to the balance of public finances.

Critics of Bolsonaro have questioned the legitimacy of the PEC, which in addition to circumvent the “spending ceiling” rule. which prevents the government from spending above inflation, could violate Brazilian law that prevents the executive from granting new benefits in an election year.

While they will bring relief in the short term, analysts point this out election benefits can fuel inflation impacting on the dollar, which appreciated in the face of greater fears that public finances would get out of control.

In a speech to Congress on Thursday, Bolsonaro said that Brazil is “the country of the present” and that the government “has a special focus” on “women” and the people of “our north-east”.

The PEC will provide the government with 41 billion reais (about 7,600 million dollars at the current exchange rate) which will begin to be paid in the first half of August.

“These resources go directly to the pockets of the beneficiaries, there are 18 million families in Aid Brazil and I want to clarify that two thirds of that audience are women,” the president said.

In search of the female vote

The latest poll by the Quaest agency, published two weeks ago, indicated that Bolsonaro, of the Liberal Party (PL, right) has 31% of the voting intentions against 45% of the former president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, of the Workers’ Party (PT, left).

The numbers of this survey coincide, except for nuances, with those of other consulting firms, which predict a possible victory for the former president.

Overall, polls show Lula strongest among women and poor northeastern states, and Bolsonaro performs best among men and southern states, with the best per capita income standards.

Apparently the president and his campaign team, one of whose strategists is his son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, are betting that this set of measures of the “PEC of kindness” will be able to win over some of the female electorate and the electorate of the North East.

In any case, the president has assured that this plan is unrelated to any intentions relating to the October 2 elections. “Those who have needs do not want to know whether or not there are elections, who is hungry at the moment”, gives priority to the concrete to the politician, the president declared on Thursday just before arriving at the Legislative Palace in Brasilia.

Source: ANSA and AP

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