President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) stated this Wednesday (1st) that the federal government’s investment in education and social programs, such as Pé-de-Meia, goes against the interests of the financial market and once again criticized the country’s economic elite during an event in Fortaleza (CE).
“Faria Lima, there in São Paulo, the ‘Avenida dos Banqueiros’, must be ‘pissed’ at me. “Why is this Lula putting R$ 18 billion to take care of poor people’s children at school, if this money could be here in the bank making us richer?”, said the PT member.
At the event, Lula stated that the government has already allocated around R$18.6 billion to the program, aimed at keeping students in high school, and argued that the expenditure should be seen as a strategic investment. “When it comes to education, we don’t talk about spending, we talk about investment, because education is the best investment the country can make to improve the possibilities of its people”, he stated.
When defending the expansion of access to education, Lula stated that public policies in the area seek to reduce historical inequalities and guarantee equal opportunities. According to him, the intention is to allow students from different backgrounds to compete under similar conditions.
“We are just opening a door so that the worker’s son and the domestic worker’s daughter have the same chance to compete for a job as anyone else in this country,” he stated.
The ceremony was also marked by provocations from opponents during the speeches and by a direct reaction from the governor of Ceará, Elmano de Freitas (PT), who responded to the demonstrations by criticizing former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
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There was also an emphatic statement from the Minister of Education and former governor Camilo Santana (PT), who should be Elmano’s electoral leader in the State, currently behind former minister Ciro Gomes (PSDB) in the polls. Camilo even cried at the ceremony alongside Lula.
The president praised the Minister of Education, Camilo Santana, by stating that, if he had to pay him for the work carried out in charge of the department, “he would not have the money to pay”. In the same vein, Lula encouraged popular participation in public life and asked supporters not to abandon the political debate, arguing that it is precisely “honest people” who need to remain engaged.
When speaking, Elmano tried to contain the interruptions from opponents present and classified the episodes as “provocations” by Bolsonarists. In a critical tone, he stated that political opponents “did nothing in Ceará”, citing the lack of investment in technical schools and universities, in addition to criticizing salary policies. “Bye, bye. It’s late, (Jair) Bolsonaro”, he said, drawing applause from the PT audience.
