Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/BRASILIA: Far-right former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s party has said that any member identified in videos or pictures taking part in the ransacking of government buildings would be expelled from the party.
Liberal Party President Valdemar Costa Neto said on Wednesday that his party, the largest in Brazil’s Congress, condemned the Sunday’s rampage in which Bolsonaro supporters vandalized the Supreme Court, Congress and the presidential palace.
Brazil riots
He said, “if members of the party are seen on videos or pictures smashing up the government buildings, we would expel them immediately.” He said that the vandalism was caused by an extremist minority that has no representation in the party.”
Bolsonaro, an anti-establishment populist who joined the party to have an electoral vehicle for the previous year’s election, yet to concede defeat to leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula. He has not publicly condemned his supporters who protested his loss or called for an army coup to restore him to power.
The Liberal Party has sought to distance itself from the violence as it sought to lead the opposition to Lula. The party became the largest in both chambers of Congress thanks to Bolsonaro’s popularity, though the far-right leader narrowly lost his re-election bid.
On Wednesday, Lula’s 11-day-old government braced for fresh demonstrations to “retake power” Bolsonaro’s supporters.
Costa Neto said he hopes Bolsonaro will return to Brazil soon to lead Brazil’s political right into local elections in 2024 and will be its presidential candidate in 2026.
