President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sacked Brazil’s army chief, days after the leftist leader openly said some military members had allowed an uprising by far-right protesters in the capital on 8 January. The official website of Brazil’s armed forces said General Julio Cesar de Arruda has been removed as army chief. He was replaced by General Tomás Miguel Ribeiro Paiva, who was the head of the Southeast Military Command. Lula, who has not commented publicly on the shootings, met in Brasilia with Defense Minister José Músico, Chief of Staff Rui Costa and the new army commander at the end of the day.
Speaking to reporters afterwards, Musio said that the riots of 8 January had caused a “fracture in the level of trust” in the top levels of the military and the government decided that a change was needed.
In recent weeks, Lula has targeted the military with criticism after supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed government buildings and destroyed public property in an effort to keep Bolsonaro in office.
The rebellion underscored the polarization between left and right in Brazil. Lula publicly stated several times that, of course, there were people in the military who allowed the riots to happen, although he never cited Arruda. During a conversation with the press, Lula said earlier this week that “many people from the military police and the armed forces were complicit” and had allowed protesters to enter buildings with the doors open.
In another interview, the president said that “all soldiers involved in the coup attempt will be punished, regardless of their rank.” Following the comments, Lula held several meetings with the Minister of Defense and the commanders of the armed forces. Mucio denied that he had referred to the 8 January riots, but said that relations between the military and the government needed to be adjusted.
On the eve of Arruda’s firing, a video was released of a Paiva speech earlier in the week in which he said that election results must be respected to guarantee democracy. Rioters stormed the Brazilian Congress, the presidential palace, and the Supreme Court in Brasilia, demanding military intervention and the reversal of Bolsonaro’s presidential election defeat to Lula.
In a video posted on social media from inside the presidential palace on the day of the attack, a colonel is seen trying to prevent police from arresting Bolsonaro’s supporters who stormed the building. He calls for patience with the military police, which reports to the government of the Federal District. More than a thousand people were arrested on the day of the riot and the morning after unrest, which bore strong parallels to the riot in the US Congress on January 6, 2021, which seeks to reverse former President Donald Trump’s election loss were.
A Brazilian Supreme Court judge earlier this month in his investigation authorized Bolsonaro to incite riots in Brasilia as part of a wider crackdown to catch those responsible.
According to the text of his ruling, Justice Alexandre de Moraes granted the request from the prosecutor-general’s office, citing a video that Bolsonaro posted on Facebook two days after the riots. The video claims that Lula was not voted into office, but was chosen by the Supreme Court and the Electoral Authority of Brazil.
Lula is trying to reduce the high number of military officers in the government administration left by Bolsonaro. At least 140 army officers have been dismissed since Lula took power on January 1.
(with agency inputs)