Lula did not order the elderly to walk to compensate for fuel increases – 03/10/2023 – Market

A speech from September 2022, by the then presidential candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), was taken out of context to make it seem as if he were in 2023, already president, encouraging the elderly population to go on foot to complain about the return the collection of taxes on gasoline and ethanol. At no point in the recording does the candidate mention fuel.

In the video excerpt, verified by Projeto Comprova, Lula, in fact, spoke of the lack of incentives for older people to do physical activities. According to him, cities lack suitable spaces for the practice of sports. After reflection, Lula defended that sports promotion policies should come from city halls, which would be responsible for implementing spaces for the practice of exercises.

In addition, the speech was recorded in September 2022, five months before the fuel re-encumbrance was announced, at the end of February 2023, with no relationship between the subjects.

Misleading, for Comprova, is content taken out of its original context and used in such a way that its meaning changes.

Reach

Comprova investigates suspicious content with greater reach on social networks. The post verified here had 3,800 common retweets and another 574 with comments, in addition to 13,400 likes as of the date of publication.

What the person responsible for the publication says

The report searched via Facebook for Jorge Serrano, who says he is responsible for the profile @AlertaTotal, on Twitter, where the publication was made, but there was no response until this publication.

How do we check

From a video frame, a reverse image search was performed using tools such as TinEye. From this, the report identified a photograph of the president wearing the same clothes and in the same scenario in a report by G1, which allowed the identification of the event in which he participated. A Google search, using keywords and filtering the results by the date cited in the text and by video content, led to PT’s live on YouTube. In the publication, it is possible to find, in the excerpt from 1 hour, 25 minutes and three seconds, the speech in which the PT member relates the elderly to walks. Comprova also looked for the author of the post on social networks.

Elderly

The petista was not talking about the increase in fuel prices when he questioned how it would be possible to encourage elderly people to practice physical exercises.

The excerpt used in the disinformation piece was taken from a speech he made during the election campaign, on September 27, 2022, during a meeting in São Paulo with representatives of the sport segment in the country, such as athletes, former athletes, journalists , professionals and leaders. The event was broadcast live on PT’s YouTube channel.

From 1 hour, 23 minutes and 55 seconds into the broadcast, Lula criticizes the lack of open spaces in cities for society to occupy, either for fear of violence or because there is no incentive to do so, and says that he wanted to be an example by being placed on television walking, thus provoking people his age to also walk.

Then he makes the claim that is being misleadingly disclosed: “How are we going to make these elderly people get off the couch and walk a little? Stop watching television, stop watching nonsense on television , and tell the guy ‘are you going to buy bread? go on foot! Take your wife by the hand and walk for half an hour. Go do anything’. But there is no stimulus, there is no space”.

He concludes the reasoning by noting that many people run on roads sharing space with vehicles and breathing carbon dioxide, even though it is dangerous to health and integrity, because there is nowhere to practice the exercise: “If you don’t have spaces, you don’t have the sport that dream,” he concludes.

While making the speech, Lula was discussing campaign proposals and had not even been elected. The end of the cut in federal taxes on gasoline and ethanol was announced during his government, in February 2023, five months after the meeting with the sports sector, having no connection with the previous speech.

According to the Ministry of Finance, the resumption of collection of federal taxes on gasoline and ethanol —which had been eliminated during the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL)— is intended to correct distortions and recompose the federal budget.

The exemption period established by Bolsonaro ended on December 31, 2022, but was extended by Lula until February 28, 2023 for gasoline and ethanol. Diesel and cooking gas exemptions continue until the end of 2023.

The charge for gasoline is BRL 0.47 and for ethanol BRL 0.02, maintaining the difference of BRL 0.45 between the two rates, as established in article 225 of the Federal Constitution.

What can we learn from this check

Some points in this check help to prevent the reader from believing in misinformation.

1. Be suspicious of incomplete publications that do not reach you in full. That’s because, especially on social networks or through messaging apps, there are chances that that video, audio or text excerpt has suffered edits that have changed the original meaning of the message. Therefore, do not believe in any social network clipping; search the full content.
2. Found the original video? Take a look at when this content was published. In the case of Lula’s speech, the material was broadcast live on PT’s YouTube, on September 27, 2022. That is, at the time, the current president was on an election campaign.
3. Use search engines to find news about the event or the shared statement, and be wary if you don’t find them. A possible offensive comment by Lula to the elderly, for example, would certainly be published in the media.

why do we investigate

Comprova monitors suspicious content published on social networks and messaging apps about public policies and elections at the federal level and opens investigations for those publications that have achieved greater reach and engagement. You can also suggest checks via WhatsApp 11 97795-0022. Suggestions and questions related to questionable content can also be sent to Sheet via WhatsApp 11 99486-0293.

Other checks on the topic

Comprova has already verified several contents that take Lula’s statements out of context, such as the one that was misleading in suggesting that the PT would have compared poor people to toilet paper and said that they “are just numbers” and what distorted his speeches about the Amazon.

The investigation of this content was carried out by Correio Braziliense, Estadão and AFP and published on March 7 by Projeto Comprova, a coalition that brings together 41 vehicles to check viral content. It was verified by Folha, NSC, Correio de Carajás, A Gazeta, SBT and SBT News.