Court Prevents Bolsonaro From Confiscating Sao Paulo Supplies

Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court (STF) Judge Ricardo Lewandowski on Friday issued a ruling to prevent President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration from confiscating needles, syringes, and other medical supplies that the São Paulo government bought for its immunization plan.

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The legal action was filed shortly after the federal government requested the delivery of the supplies purchased by Governor Joao Doria until noon today.

Lewandowski pointed out that the Federal government should return the supplies within 48 hours if they have already been taken.

If it does not proceed in this way, Federal authorities will receive a daily fine of US$18,560, and the Full Court will analyze this case after the judicial recess.

"The Federal government's negligence cannot harm the diligence of a state administration that tried to prepare expeditiously for the health crisis," the judge said, adding that "an administrative request cannot be turned against the goods or services of another federative entity."

Previously, in another similar case, Judge Luis Barroso suspended an act by which the federal government requested 50 lung ventilators purchased by the State of Mato Grosso.

On Jan. 5, when speaking about his country's fiscal situation, Bolsonaro acknowledged that "Brazil is broken. I can't fix it." Subsequently, he refused to buy syringes for the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, claiming that the price of those supplies was too high and he would wait for it to drop.

As of Friday morning, Brazil had reported 7,961,673 COVID-19 cases and 200,498 related deaths. The details of the Federal government's national vaccination are not yet known.