According to an article published in the Financial Times, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Jair Bolsonaro have become a wrecking ball for Mexico and Brazil’s institutions.
MEXICO (The Financial Times) – Arminio Fraga, former president of the Central Bank of Brazil, and Guillermo Ortiz, former governor of the Bank of Mexico and former secretary of finance during the Ernesto Zedillo administration, criticized the actions of the presidents of Mexico and Brazil in an article published in the Financial Times.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Jair Bolsonaro, despite coming from opposite ends of the political spectrum, reacted similarly to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The article, titled “Brazil’s and Mexico’s presidents are both ‘wrecking balls’” analyzes the similarities between both, as their clear challenge to the recommended health measures for the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The two presidents have defied health authorities’ recommendations on social distancing, continued to hold political rallies, and refused to wear a face mask until recently,” the article states.
Another similarity between the presidents noted in the article is their policies regarding the environment.
“Lopez Obrador cut budgets for the environment, degraded renewable energies in favor of oil refining, and authorized infrastructure projects without proper environmental studies.
Although there was a lot of hope in the mandates of both, the article points out that their public policies have led them to damage the institutional environment for which they are cataloged as “wrecking balls.”
“Intending to damage their countries’ institutional environment to advance retrograde political agendas, they look like balls of demolition,” the text explains.
Finally, it points out that maintaining strong institutions in both countries will be fundamental to respond to the region’s challenges.
“Although it is too early to celebrate, Brazil and Mexico have experienced at least some of the fruits of having strong institutions. These must remain fundamental to the region’s response to its challenges,” it says.