▲ Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is trailing candidate Flavio Bolsonaro in opinion polls for the presidential runoff following the first round of voting, has introduced a massive debt-relief bill for small business owners.
Attention is focused on whether this bill, announced 12 days ahead of the Brazilian presidential runoff scheduled for October 25, will be able to win back the hearts of voters disappointed with the ruling faction's economic performance.
According to local daily Folha de S.Paulo and Reuters on October 13, President Lula announced that he would submit a bill to Congress centered on forgiving debts owed by small business owners to the federal government at the presidential palace in Brasília.
The government expects that once the bill takes effect, about 3.6 million small business owners will have approximately 12.6 billion real in debt—roughly 3.4 trillion won—cleared.
However, it remains uncertain for now whether this populist bill, announced just about ten days before the runoff, will be able to overturn the race.
This is because he has continued to lag behind right-wing Liberal Party (PL) candidate Bolsonaro in various opinion polls following the first round of voting.
According to the results of a Nexus runoff preference poll released on this day, President Lula managed to secure only 45 percent support, trailing slightly behind candidate Bolsonaro at 48 percent.
Although it is within the margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points, Lula has not reclaimed the lead even once in opinion polls conducted since the first round of voting.
Prior to the first round of voting, Lula had maintained an advantage over candidate Bolsonaro in various polls.
President Lula's biggest concern is the crumbling livelihood economy.
Soaring household debt and worsening macroeconomic indicators are his most vulnerable Achilles' heel as he attempts a historic fourth term.
According to the National Confederation of Trade in Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC), 82 percent of all households were burdened with various debts as of July.
This is the highest level since relevant statistics began being compiled in 2010.
The rates of unpaid credit card balances, debt rolling, and overdraft accounts are also at all-time highs.
Consumer prices have already exceeded the central bank's target upper limit.
In an all-out effort to boost his approval ratings, President Lula launched aggressive measures last September, including a 15 percent hike in cash support payments for low-income households.
However, he only managed to secure 45.16 percent of the vote in the first presidential round, losing to candidate Bolsonaro, who garnered 47.03 percent.
Since Brazil's democratization in 1989, there has yet to be a case where a candidate lost the first round of voting and then achieved a comeback victory in the runoff.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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