Lula took for granted that citizens will send Bolsonaro “home” on Sunday night and defended the achievements in social matters of his two administrations, and the head of the Planalto emphasized the cases of corruption and warned that the former trade unionist can be a candidate for having “a little friend” in the Federal Supreme Court (STF), after having three court convictions against.
Bolsonaro he opened his speeches harshly: in less than two minutes He called Lula a “liar”, a “traitor to the country” and a “former prisoner”.
He said several times that no acts of corruption were recorded in his administration and he had to be called to order almost permanently because he interrupted the speech of the other applicants with shouts from his chair.
The president noticed the diversion of funds through contractors of the state oil company Petrobras, and linked the leader of the Workers’ Party (PT) with alleged gangs and accused Lula’s sons of “stealing millions of companies.”
To Lula’s mentions of the work of the Congressional Investigative Commission that warned of irregularities in the government plan to deal with the pandemic, Bolsonaro replied: “What is this CPI, the farce? What did you come here to defend?”
“Are you talking about gangs with me? You need to look in the mirror and see what is happening in your government. You, when you approach the microphone, must behave like a president. Respect who you are looking at and don’t lie,” Lula told him. in one of the replicas.
The PT candidate also insisted that the president’s accusations against him were “crazy” and promised to end the secrecy of the administration imposed by Bolsonaro.
“People will send you home on October 2,” Lula snapped.
In these elections, the “future of the nation” is at stake and Lula should not be allowed to return to power in whose government (2003-2010) “children were taught to start sexually” in schools, Bolsonaro said.
For its part, Lula asked the president to “stop lying” and asked him why he decreed “one hundred year secrecy” on documents related to cases of alleged corruption that would involve relatives of Bolsonaro.
Previously, Lula had highlighted that his efforts at the head of the country were “the moments of greatest achievements, of greatest inclusion” for the most neglected sectors, and among those achievements he mentioned the 76% rise in wages.
He also denied having allowed irregularities in his presidencies and, instead, stated that “thanks to what was done to combat corruption, the cases were discovered and the people were punished.”
Lula, favorite in the polls
Lula came to the debate with the calm that the latest Datafolha poll gave him, which showed him 14 points ahead of Bolsonaro, which puts him on the verge of a victory in the first round.
Neither one nor the other had activities today, and they only dedicated themselves to preparing the TV presence, which they shared with six other Planalto candidates: Ciro Gomes (PDT), Felipe D’Ávila (NOVO), Simone Tebet (MDB), Soraya Thronicke (Brazil Union) and Kelmon Da Silva Souza (PTB).
The debate, the second Lula-Bolsonaro face-to-face after the one they had on August 28, was coordinated by William Bonner and began only after “Pantanal,” a hugely successful soap opera.
Lula also had to counteract some diatribes against him from the PDT candidate, Ciro Gomes, with whom he is supposed to dispute at least part of the electorate, who told him that he left his government due to “moral differences.”