This followed on the heels of an earlier statement, where Bolsonaro declared that if he were to order the military to take the streets and restore order, “the order will be followed”. Bolsonaro said he would not “go into details into what I’m preparing”, adding, “if we were to have problems, we have a plan of how to enter the field … our armed forces could one day go into the streets.”
Growing opposition
Bolsonaro’s unhinged utterances portray the increasing paranoia in the fissured neo-fascist political camp, as opposition to the ruling government’s policies rises.
Sergio Lirio, editor of “Carta Capital”, wrote: “Bolsonaro’s approval rating is hovering around 30%. He is no longer concerned with governing. His sole focus is avoiding impeachment and making it to 2022 with at least some chance of making it to the second round of the presidential elections.”
Pablo Stefanoni.
The fracturing of Bolsonarismo is also linked to the return of former Workers’ Party president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to politics, following the Supreme Court’s annulment of corruption convictions against him.
What is behind the crisis in the military and, in your opinion, how deep is it?
It is important to remember that the armed forces are one of the pillars of the Bolsonaro government, together with the financial and agribusiness sectors. This is the social coalition that was behind the coup against former Workers Party president Dilma Rousseff.
The expectation was that Bolsonaro would carry out an ultra-neoliberal agenda and restore the armed forces’ image, which had been eroded since the dictatorship.