Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has sacked his health minister after clashing with him over how to fight the new coronavirus.
Few global leaders have done more than Bolsonaro to downplay the global pandemic, which has killed nearly 2,000 Brazilians.
He has called the virus “a little flu” and criticized state governors for imposing the shutdowns supported by health experts and the popular outgoing minister, Luiz Henrique Mandetta.
In televised remarks met with pot-banging protests in major cities, Bolsonaro said Mandetta did not fully appreciate the need to protect Brazilian jobs and called again for a resumption of economic activity.
“We need to return to normal, not as fast as possible, but we need to start having some flexibility,” said the president, adding that the government cannot afford to keep up emergency aid to the poor for much longer.
While Bolsonaro sharply criticized the shutdowns, the Health Ministry under Mandetta provided guidance supportive of the social distancing measures.
Mandetta’s daily briefings had also contradicted Bolsonaro’s praise for unproven drugs.
Incoming minister Nelson Teich, asked at a joint news conference about the ministry’s position now that he was in charge, said there will not be any “sudden changes” in policy.
However, he added: “There is a complete alignment between me and the president.”
Teich, who founded an oncology group sold to United Healthcare in 2015, lacks the political experience of his predecessor, a former lawmaker who had begun to upstage the president.
The Health Ministry’s response to the epidemic was rated “good” or “great” by 76% of Brazilians surveyed by pollster Datafolha this month. Just 33% of those surveyed gave Bolsonaro the same ratings.
In his parting comments to colleagues at the ministry, Mandetta called for a smooth transition and warned that Brazil is still far from the peak of the coronavirus outbreak.
