Former President Lula Accuses Bolsonaro of Destroying Brazil

On the eve of the carnival holiday, Senators Gleisi Hoffmann and Paulo Pimenta visited the Federal Police headquarters in Curitiba, where Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is serving a prison sentence since April 7, 2018.

During their visit, Lula accused President Jair Bolsonaro of being the "destroyer" of the social and institutional achievements which the popular struggles made possible in the last decades. "There are people who are elected to govern and there are people who are chosen to destroy," Lula said.

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Lula also noticed that Bolsonaro's administration is "not only suppressing people's rights but also national sovereignty," as reported by Hoffmann, who recalled that the Brazilian far-right sympathizes with the U.S. approach to international affairs, which seeks to interfere in Venezuela's internal situations so as to retain control over Latin American resources.

"We have to talk to the people, in public squares and going from house to house," Hoffmann expressed after her meeting with Lula, who is controversially accused of alleged acts of corruption, although the Workers' Party leader has always maintained his innocence.

Social movements, human rights activists and progressive politicians around the world have also defended the innocence of former President Lula, who is being prosecuted to keep him out of Brazilian politics.

"Jair Bolsonaro, a criminal who destroys the Brazilian people's dignity. The biggest corrupt in Brazil's history. Bolsonaro spent 11 years inside the Progressive Party (PP), the party most mentioned for corruption in the Lava Jato affair story. Tell me who you are with and I will tell you who you are."

"What Lula asked us is to keep on fighting, resisting, and mobilizing society without losing sight of our mission, which is to struggle to make our country fair, generous, and full of opportunities for all," Pimenta said and commented that Lula "is aware of his historical role. He is a political prisoner and understands what he means for the Brazilian people."

As a result of the lawfare on Lula, Lula da Silva could not participate in the 2018 presidential elections, in which he had the majority of popular support.

As a result of political maneuvers aimed at keeping Lula out of that contest, the far-right deputy Jair Bolsonaro was elected president on Oct. 28, 2018.