RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – In a social media publication on Saturday morning, May 16th, Regina Duarte, special Secretary of Culture, attacked the press and said she was a victim of “biased, malicious, fake, poisonous stories.”
Since her appointment as Head of the Culture Secretariat – currently linked to the Ministry of Tourism – Regina has suffered criticism from the ideological wing of the Bolsonaro government and the artistic class.
Her assistant secretary, Pedro Horta, was dismissed from office on Friday, May 15th, in a decision published in the Federal Gazette and signed by Minister Walter Braga Netto (Chief of Staff).
The attorney joined as assistant secretary in late April, after having been Regina’s chief of staff. Before joining the government, he served as head of the commercial department of CEAGESP (São Paulo State Stock and General Warehouses Company).
This is the first time the actress has commented directly on the matter since the dismissal. “Soon, you will see the results I want for culture in my country, happening under my administration,” she wrote.
On Thursday, May 7th, Regina ended an interview with CNN TV Station when she was faced with criticism from actress Maitê Proença.
“What’s in it for you? Who are you to dig up Maitê Proença’s statement from two months ago? I don’t want to hear it; she has my phone number. I had so much to talk about, and you’re digging up dead people,” Regina said, ending the interview granted to CNN Brasil.
She was upset when the network showed a video sent on Thursday by Maitê, asking the secretary to provide solutions for the artistic class amid the pandemic.
She also downplayed the military dictatorship, torture, and the deaths by the novel coronavirus in Brazil. On the other hand, Regina’s performance was well assessed by Bolsonaro, and, according to the secretary’s advisors, the actress is expected to remain in her position.
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