Brazil's Evolution Veers Through Ascension of Poor: Lula

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva continues his sojourn through the state of Minas Gerais as part of his “Lula Around Brazil” caravan.

RELATED:
Brazil's Lula Launches New Tour Ahead of 2018 Election

This weekend he stopped in Bocaiuva and Jequitinhonha where he spoke to enthusiastic crowds about the need for Brazil to invest in education, according to Brasil 24/7.

“When they finance businessmen, they call it investment. When they finance students, they call it an expenditure,” Lula told the crowd in reference to Brazil's current administration and how it scorns education. He added that he had hoped to build many more universities during his two terms in office but there was no funding. “So I came up with the idea to swap university debt for student enrollment.”

In fact, a total of 18 public universities and 214 technical schools were established during Lula's presidency. Prior to Lula taking office, Brazil, a country surpassing 200 million people, had only 140 technical schools.

The former head of state, who left office with a record approval rating of 83 percent, according to Datafolha, pounced on the current lack of investment in education, highlighting educational opportunities afforded to the poor when the Worker's Party held the presidency.

“I'm aware that Brazil's evolution veers through the ascension of the poor," said Lula. He went on to state that “money in the hands of the rich is wealth concentration, in the hands of the poor it's distribution. Poor people consume, they make the economy turn round.”

RELATED:
Brazil's Temer Blames Minister as Slave Labor Decree Slammed

During a previous stop, Lula reiterated the need for a public referendum to “change what they've done,” referring to the austerity measures and other policies enacted by Brazil's de facto President Michel Temer.

According to the latest Ibope poll, Lula would win the presidency if elections were held today. Voting intentions place him in first place anywhere between 35 and 36 percent of votes.

Lula's caravan will continue to travel in Minas Gerais until Oct. 30.