Brasilia, (EFE).- The President-elect of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, announced 16 of his next ministers this Thursday, including future Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin as head of Industry and Trade.
Lula will take over the presidency on January 1 and has announced plans to increase the number of ministries to 37, up from 23 in the government of far-right Jair Bolsonaro, whom he defeated in last October’s elections.
This Thursday he announced his future ministers for Institutional Relations, General Secretariat, General Counsel, Auditors, Health, Industry and Commerce, Education, Administration, Ports and Airports, Science and Technology, Women, Social Development, Culture, Labor, Racial Equality, and Human Rights.
Brazil’s President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (c) is seen after a press conference on the transition’s final report and announcing 16 ministers of his future government in Brasilia, Brazil. EFE/Andre Borges
The last two cases are highly symbolic appointments.
For Racial Equality, he named activist Anielle Franco, sister of councilwoman Marielle Franco who was murdered along with her driver in March 2018, and also a vocal human rights defender.
Sílvio Almeida, a black lawyer who, like Arielle Franco, is known for his struggles with racism, will be represented on the human rights desk.
Cida Gonçalves, future Minister for Women, is a specialist in the fight against gender-based violence and represents another step towards the strong social emphasis Lula has promised his government.
Another nod in this direction was given by the Ministry of Health, a ministry for which he appointed Nísia Trindade, previously a researcher at the FioCruz Foundation, one of the country’s largest scientific references, who has played a key role in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Covid-19 minimized by Bolsonaro’s government from the start.
President-elect of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva poses with appointed Minister of Health Nísia Trindade in Brasilia, Brazil. EFE/Andre Borges
All other appointments were more of a political nature.
In the case of Alckmin, who will share his vice-presidency work with the Ministry of Industry and Foreign Trade, Lula explained that he would have preferred a businessman for the position, but that he “couldn’t convince anyone” why he chose it who it will be ” one of the best ministers of the future government».
Former Workers’ Party (PT) state governor Piauí Wellington Dias will be in charge of the portfolio of Social Development, a new ministry focused on caring for the poorest, the top priority Lula has set for his third term Has .
Lula had already appointed his ministers of finance, foreign relations, defense, justice, the presidency and culture.
President-elect of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva poses with Minister-elect for Racial Equality Anielle Franco during a press conference on the final report of the transition and announcing 16 ministers of his future government in Brasilia, Brazil. EFE/Andre Borges
At the Treasury he elected Fernando Haddad, a man he trusts most, like Rui Costa, who will hold the ministry of the presidency.
The Foreign Ministry is headed by Mauro Vieira, a career diplomat who held the position between 2015 and 2016 during Dilma Rousseff’s tenure.
Defense minister will be José Múcio, former director of the Court of Accounts, the body that oversees public accounts and has a long and excellent relationship with the armed forces.
The portfolio of justice has been entrusted to Flávio Dino, a politician close to Lula who was a former governor of Maranhao and won a seat in the Senate in last October’s elections.
The industry welcomes the fact that the sector has a ministry again
The Vice President-Elect of Brazil Geraldo Alckmin addresses a press conference in Brasilia, Brazil today. EFE/Andre Borges
The industry welcomed the fact that the President-elect of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has breathed new life into a ministry for the sector and that Vice-President-elect Geraldo Alckmin is its head, as it will “salvage” its strength for the economy , the employers said this Thursday.
“The reorganization of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC) and the appointment of Vice-President-elect Geraldo Alckmin as its head demonstrate a determined and committed approach to strengthening the industrial production sector,” said Robson Braga de Andrade, President of the National Confederation of Industry (CNI).
According to the executive, the vice president-elect knows the priorities of the country’s development agenda, so the ministry “will be in very good hands.”
In a statement, Braga de Andrade recalled that the future minister, having governed the state of Sao Paulo, the most populous and industrialized in the country, is a “skillful” politician who has the necessary knowledge to promote the industry .
According to the company, the main challenge of the portfolio is to build a modern industrial policy that allows Brazilian industry to have a “consistent and sustainable recovery” and alignment with the world’s major economies.