President Jair Bolsonaro, suffering symptoms of COVID-19, disclosed Tuesday that he has the coronavirus but doubled down on his assertion that the pandemic that has killed more than 65,000 Brazilians poses little risk to healthy people.
Bolsonaro has repeatedly downplayed the seriousness of the virus and undermined lockdown and social distancing measures, urging Brazilians to continue working and encouraging mass rallies of his supporters.
At one point he dismissed the virus as “a measly cold,” and when asked in late April about the rising death toll, he replied: “So what? Sorry, but what do you want me to do?”
Critics at home and abroad have called Bolsonaro’s handling of the pandemic reckless, and news that he was infected ignited a new wave of indignation over government actions that gave the virus free rein in Latin America’s largest nation. Brazil has more confirmed cases, over 1.6 million, and more deaths than any country except the United States.
Bolsonaro, 65, characterised his diagnosis as a predictable outcome of a leadership style that requires that he be among the people, on the “front lines of the fight.” He compared the virus to “rain, which is going to get to you.”
Speaking to journalists outside the presidential palace in Brasília shortly after noon Tuesday, Bolsonaro, said he had taken a test Monday after experiencing fatigue, muscle pain and a fever. He said he was feeling well, which he credited to having taken hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug he has endorsed but which studies show does not ward off the virus.
Bolsonaro did not express contrition for his handling of the pandemic and voiced confidence that he would manage to work from home during the next few days while he recovers. He said he had long assumed he would catch the virus.
“Considering how much contact I have with the people, which was a lot during the past few months, I assumed I would have already caught it without developing symptoms,” he said. “Just like the majority of the Brazilian people who contract the virus and don’t perceive the problem.”
The president insisted that he was “very well” and, standing just a few feet away from journalists took off his mask so reporters could see his face. “Thank you to all those who prayed for me, cheered for me. Those who have criticised, no problem, you can continue to criticise at will.”
Even as several of Bolsonaro’s aides have tested positive for the virus in recent months, the president has often eschewed precautions like wearing a mask and practicing social distancing.
Most recently, Bolsonaro and a handful of his ministers attended a luncheon at the residence of Todd Chapman, the US ambassador in Brazil. Because attendees sat in proximity during the Fourth of July event, and refrained from wearing masks, Chapman has adopted precautionary measures, including alerting people he has been in contact with in recent days of his possible exposure to the virus.
As Brazilians awaited the results of the president’s latest coronavirus test, messages posted on social media illustrated how politically polarised the country had become.
Two trending hashtags on Twitter on Tuesday morning were #ForçaBolsonaro and #ForçaCorona — the first sending the president strength and the other effectively expressing hope that the president would fall ill.
