LAST UPDATE | 30 Dec 2022

BRAZIL’S OUTGOING PRESIDENT Jair Bolsonaro, who has not acknowledged his electoral defeat, has left the country two days before his successor’s inauguration and shortly after bidding his followers a tearful farewell.

The controversial far-right leader left for Florida in the United States on an air force plane around 2pm (5pm Irish time), according to several news outlets.

“I am flying, I’ll be back soon,” CNN Brazil reported Bolsonaro as saying.

This means he will miss Sunday’s swearing-in ceremony and will not transfer the presidential sash to leftist president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, as is the tradition.

Bolsonaro is technically president for two more days.

His vice president, Hamilton Mourao, is now acting president and will give a national address tomorrow, according to the RNR public broadcaster.

Earlier today, Bolsonaro bid followers a tearful farewell without stating whether he would attend Lula’s inauguration.

In a live broadcast on Facebook, the far-right Bolsonaro assured supporters that “we will not see the world end on 1 January” when leftist Lula takes office.

“We have a great future ahead,” he declared, adding: “Battles are lost, but we will not lose the war.”

It was Bolsonaro’s first live address since his narrow October defeat, after which the active social media user fell uncharacteristically silent.

Lula had won the election with 50.9% of the vote to Bolsonaro’s 49.1%.

Lula is to receive the presidential sash in an elaborate ceremony in Brasilia on Sunday. Normally it would be bestowed by the outgoing president.

The presidency had authorised a delegation to travel with Bolsonaro to Miami from 1 to 30 January to provide “security and personal support to the future former president of the Republic,” according to today’s government gazette.

Addressing hundreds of followers who continue to protest outside military installations in Brasilia and other cities demanding the army intervenes to stop Lula’s ascension, Bolsonaro said he had given his best.

“I never expected to get here,” he added, in tears.

“At least, we delayed by four years Brazil’s collapse into this nefarious ideology, which is the left… Say the best of me,” said Bolsonaro, who according to a majority of analysts leaves behind a poor record that includes environmental destruction and Covid-19 chaos.

Outside the official presidential residence in Brasilia, AFP witnessed two people following Bolsonaro’s remarks live on a cellphone insult him as a “coward” and “shameless.”

The president spoke for the first time about a failed bomb attack in Brasilia a week ago by a man who said he was a Bolsonaro supporter seeking to sow “chaos” ahead of the inauguration and “prevent the establishment of communism in Brazil” under Lula.

“Nothing justifies this attempt at terrorism,” Bolsonaro said.

The failed attempt with explosives placed in a fuel truck, as well as acts of vandalism carried out by other Bolsonaro fans this month, prompted the authorities to deploy an unprecedented security contingent for Sunday’s swearing in.

© AFP 2022