Jair Bolsonaro attended two events in Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro on Sept. 7 on bicentennial of the emancipation as well as civic and military celebrations, mixing campaign actions as candidate for reelection for the Liberal Party.

In view of these facts, the PDT filed an action to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), alleging Bolsonaro used the celebrations as an electoral pedestal by calling for votes, praising his government’s actions and attacking other candidates for October 2 voting.

“Being a public ceremony to praise a Brazil´s historic deed, the event could not have been transformed into an electoral podium, by using a structure financially supported with public money,” the PDT said.

PDT insisted the former military officer, taking advantage of his functional condition, capitalized on the entire superstructure of the civic event of the bicentennial of the Brazilian Independence, “specifically to promote his image before voters, in total disregard of the electoral rules and with clear bias to unbalance the lawsuit”. In the same matter, the Brazil of Hope Coalition informed that it will denounce Bolsonaro before the Electoral Justice for abuse of economic and political power.

Attorneys will hand over a so-called Electoral Judicial Investigation Action to TSE, considering that Bolsonaro picked up on the civic-military act to make, explicitly, a proselytizing mega rally.

“Bolsonaro made use of an official event to speak as presidential candidate. There is an abuse of economic and political power, using public resources, to campaign,” according to attorneys Eugênio Aragão and Cristiano Zanin.

In this regard, Lula said on social networks that “when I served as President, I had the opportunity to attend two Sept. 7 ceremonies, in 2006 and 2010, at election time. The Day of the Motherland, a day of the Brazilian people, the biggest day of our country, on account of Independence, was never used as an instrument of electoral politics”, he remarked.

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