Brazil: After resignations in Economy, Bolsonaro says Minister Guedes will stay

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday night, October 21, said that Economy Minister Paulo Guedes will remain in office. Their meeting will take place after a defection of four high-ranking Economy Ministry Secretaries, caused by disagreements over the possibility of breaching the spending cap to accommodate the amount of R$400 (US$71) for ‘Auxílio Brasil’ (Brazil Aid) beneficiaries, a program to replace ‘Bolsa Família’ (Family Grant).

Bolsonaro also said he would meet with Guedes later that evening.

The President said he would like the Special Secretary of Treasury and Budget Bruno Funchal and the Secretary of the National Treasury Jeferson Bittencourt to remain on the economic team and also advocated keeping Guedes.

“Paulo Guedes will continue in the government and the government will pursue the reform policy. We support the reforms underway in the National Congress, this is the goal,” he said.

Following Funchal and Bitterncourt, the special deputy Secretary of Treasury and Budget Gildenora Dantas, and the deputy Secretary of the National Treasury Rafael Araújo also resigned from their positions, allegedly for personal reasons.

In addition to the reduction of the economic team, another resignation surprised the market: the departure of the Secretary of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels of the Ministry of Mines and Energy José Mauro Coelho.

About the diesel aid, announced earlier and poorly received by the market and truckers’ representatives, he said that “things could worsen if the government did nothing.”

Earlier, during an event in Pernambuco, Bolsonaro announced the creation of an aid for self-employed truckers. “We will assist self-employed truckers. The numbers [values and impacts on the budget] will be presented in the coming days,” Bolsonaro said. The amount is estimated at R$400, to be paid monthly until December 2022.

The President also added that the aid for Brazil and for truckers does not pose a risk to the cap. “Nothing is outside the budget, everything is being done responsibly,” he said.