Lula goes down the Planalto ramp and defends public buildings without bars

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva went to check closely the entrance to the Planalto Palace without movable guardrails, after almost ten years. By surprise, Lula walked down the ramp of the government headquarters, this Wednesday afternoon (10), just over five months after taking the opposite route to kick off his third in-person mandate. Hours earlier, the Presidency of the Republic had removed the guardrails surrounding the Planalto Palace. “What I think is that Brazil doesn’t need to be surrounded by bars. Leave democracy free, it doesn’t need walls,” Lula told journalists as he walked over the ramp. He was accompanied by his wife Janja Lula da Silva, and by the Minister of Social Communication of the Presidency of the Republic (Secom), Paulo Pimenta. The protective equipment had been in place at least since 2013, when thousands of Brazilians took to the streets in violent protests in several cities across the country, in the so-called Jornadas de Junho. The railings remained throughout the following years, covering the period of protests during the impeachment process of then-president Dilma Rousseff, the more than two years of Michel Temer’s government and the four years of Jair Bolsonaro’s management, in addition to the episode of attempt to coup d’état organized by far-right Bolsonarist militants, on January 8 of this year. President Lula went personally to inspect the removal of the railings that surrounded the Planalto Palace – Ricardo Stuckert/PR Lula also ordered the removal of the concrete blocks positioned on the road that gives access to the official residences of the president and vice president, respectively the Palácio da Alvorada and the Palácio do Jaburu, located in a slightly more isolated area, but close to Praça dos Três Poderes. “I’m going to take down that wall in front of the Palace [da Alvorada]”, said Lula, recalling that, throughout his eight years in office, he never suffered protests in front of the official residence. “If I want to surround the people and not allow them to protest, democracy makes no sense”, he argued. After checking the Planalto Palace without bars, the president even greeted supporters who were there and took a photo with them. First lady Janja was also much requested by the popular people, especially women. It was symbolic and took place at the request of the president in view of the scenario the country is experiencing. “A moment of unity and reconstruction cannot have a lot of railings”, Pimenta told journalists earlier. According to him, however, on specific occasions, such as solemnities and parades, the mobile railings may be temporarily replaced.

Agência Brasil