ILLUSTRATION. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro
Source: Reuters | Editor: Anna Suci Perwitasari
KONTAN.CO.ID – BRASILIA. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro insists he will not take a coronavirus vaccine. This is Bolsonaro’s latest controversial statement after he expressed doubts about the coronavirus vaccination program.
In a statement broadcast live on various social media platforms, the far-right leader added that Congress is unlikely to ask Brazilians to take a vaccine.
Brazil has the second-highest death toll from the coronavirus in the world, and Bolsonaro has for months played down the seriousness of the pandemic despite being infected with the coronavirus in July.
“I told you, I won’t take it. It’s mine,” he said.
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Bolsonaro also expressed doubts over the effectiveness of wearing masks in the broadcast, implying that there is little conclusive evidence of the effectiveness of masks in stemming the transmission of the coronavirus.
The Brazilian president has repeatedly said that Brazilians will not be required to be vaccinated when a coronavirus vaccine is widely available.
Even last October, he joked on Twitter that vaccinations would only be needed for his dog.
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