Giving food/money to the poor = earning votes for the next presidential election.

This Sunday, October 3, 2010, was a very important day for many Brazilians. After 4 years, we are again forced to vote for a new president. The candidates are: Marina Silva, a former environmentalist, representing the Green Party; she works tirelessly to defend Brazil's rain forest. Jose Serra, a centrist from the Brazilian Social Democracy Party and former mayor and governor of Sao Paulo. For last, Dilma Rousseff, A one-time Marxist guerrilla, with no experience in being a leader in politics, chosen by Brazil's most popular leader in history to succeed him.

The IBOPE, the polling institute indicated the following for Sunday’s presidential election:

%

Dilma – 13 – PT 51%

José Serra – 45 – PSDB 30%

Marina Silva – 43 – PV 18%

But the margin of error was plus or minus 2 percentage points.

If election does go to a second ballot, it would be Rousseff against Serra. Unfortunately, Rousseff will probably win because of her boss, the president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, which he is leaving office with 80 percent of approval ratings.  The president, also known as Lula, stayed in power for eight years during which 20.5 million people have been lifted from poverty.

When it said that Lula lifted 20.5 million people from poverty I became furious with the lie and of course these 20.5 million people will support Lula’s successor. Lula didn’t actually lift 20.5 million people out of poverty; he only gave food and money to the people in the northeast of Brazil, the poorest part of Brazil. I think it was the wrong thing to do, instead of investing the money in the economy he spent on the people who doesn’t contribute to the growth of Brazil. Now the people who received the money and food from the government will get used to not working for food. So there is no reason for the people to work in order to earn money and feed themselves. The people who are receiving from the government are getting used to the easy life; doing nothing and yet being provided with money and food. And of course they don’t want this to end so they definitely vote for Lula’s successor, Dilma Rousseff.

I believe that Brazil deserves a president that has experience in being a leader and I believe that Jose Serra is the right man for the job. Serra is the former mayor and governor of Sao Paulo, the 10^th richest city in the world. Should DIlma Rouseff  be elected as president ?