Lula says that “little citizen wanted to carry out a coup” and that Venezuela has more elections than Brazil

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) said, this Thursday morning (29), that there was an attempted coup d’état in Brazil on January 8 by a “little citizen” who did not accept the election results.

The statement was given to Rádio Gaúcha shortly before the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) resumed the trial of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) due to the meeting with ambassadors about the Brazilian electoral system, last year.

Lula was asked why he does not consider the political situation in Venezuela as a dictatorship, in which he contested the statement and said that the country led by Nicolás Maduro “has more elections” than Brazil. And he also stated that here the opposition does not accept the result of the polls.

“Didn’t we have a citizen here, a wise guy who didn’t want to accept the election result? Didn’t we have a little citizen here who wanted to carry out a coup on the 8th of January? There are people who do not want to accept the election result, ”he said.

He also stated that “not everyone is like Lula, who lost to Collor and accepted the result, who lost twice to Fernando Henrique Cardoso and accepted the result, goes home to lick his wounds, as Brizola and get ready for another fight.”

Lula also said that the concept of democracy is “relative” from one person to another, which, for him, exists in Venezuela. Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch said the appointment of new members to the country’s National Electoral Council threatens the “already unfair” electoral system, as everyone belongs to the ruling party.

“What did the world do trying to elect Guaidó president of Venezuela, a citizen who had not been elected? If fashion catches on, there is no longer a guarantee in democracy and a guarantee of people’s mandate. Whoever wants to defeat Maduro, defeat him in the next elections. Now there will be an election. Defeat and take power. Let’s go check it out. If you don’t have an honest election, we speak”, he added.

The speech against Guaidó was similar to a statement given during Nicolás Maduro’s visit to Brazil, last month, in which he was received with honors by Lula at the Planalto Palace. The visit was viewed with suspicion by Latin American leaders who questioned the resumption of bilateral relations with the country.