Brazil's Lula launches presidential candidacy for 2022 election
In an auditorium packed with thousands of supporters, Brazil's leftist former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva launched on Saturday (May 7) his presidential candidacy for this October's election, calling for unity around democracy.
Lula focused his speech on the recovery of Brazil's sovereignty, the country's economy hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and defending the Brazilian Amazon.
"We need to put Brazil back among the best economies in the world. We need to reverse the slowing process of the deindustrialisation of the country and create an environment of political, economic, and institutional stability that encourages business people to invest in Brazil again," Lula said at the event.
Lula also criticised the performance of current President Jair Bolsonaro's administration.
"We will never do what our adversary, who tries to mask his incompetence by fighting all the time with everyone and lying seven times a day."
Saturday's event brought together representatives of seven parties, social movements, trade union centres, artists, and intellectuals. Lula has spent months forging alliances with a half dozen other parties.
Both Lula and Bolsonaro have been in campaign mode for months but are limited in their official campaign activities by Brazilian election law.
Bolsonaro faces a tough challenge to win re-election against his political nemesis Lula.
Many Brazilians are angry at Bolsonaro's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, rising inflation, and high fuel prices.
Lula, whose Workers Party (PT) governed Brazil from 2003 to 2016, maintains a 13-15 point poll lead over Bolsonaro.