Rousseff Will Use Her Inauguration Ceremony to Endorse Adjustments in Economy

01/01/2015 - 12h48

Dilma Vana Rousseff, 67, will take over her second term as President of the Republic this Thursday (1st) with a speech that aims to endorse the adjustments (started in late 2014) in Brazil's economic policy as necessary to make the country grow again.

Rousseff is Brazil's first female president. She was re-elected in October after the fiercest runoff since the country's democratization. She will be sworn in at the Chamber of Deputies and will make her speech shortly after, around 3:30 pm.

The president will start her second term facing an economic slowdown. The speech she adopted during the campaign will be in check due to the measures introduced to clean up last year's government accounts that should close in the red.

Rousseff has chosen Joaquim Levy, a conservative economist to be the next Finance Minister. He supports changes to rebalance public finances and refrain government's spending.

Last week, the president allowed actions that restrict access to social benefits such as unemployment insurance and survivor benefits, even though she promised during the campaign she would not touch labour rights.

According to the inauguration speech discussed in recent days with her staff, the President must appoint as priorities the fight against inflation, the preservation of jobs and the reduction of inequalities.

Rousseff will also make nods to entrepreneurs, showing she is open to dialogue and interested in partnerships in an effort to avoid the issues that marked her relationship with the business community during her first term.

She intends to invite the private sector to invest in infrastructure projects and take advantage of the opportunities offered as permits to build and administer highways, airports, ports and railways controlled by the federal government

After a poor economic performance in 2014 and the possibility of another tough year ahead, Rousseff will promise less bureaucracy, predictable economic decisions and measures that stimulate the private sector to invest.

The president's speech is expected to last 30 minutes. After the ceremony at the Chamber of Deputies, she will head to Palácio do Planalto where she will briefly greet the audience present at Praça dos Três Poderes. Finally, Rousseff will induct the new Ministry, whose names were announced yesterday (31).

CORRUPTION

The President also intends to talk about corruption during her speech, in an attempt to answer to the allegations of corruption raised by the Car Wash Operation, a probe conducted by the Federal Police that investigates a massive corruption scheme at Petrobras.

The President is also expected to say that she does not tolerate wrongdoings and will propose to the Congress a package of measures to fight corruption, as promised during her re-election campaign.

This time, Rousseff will rule a different country from the one inherited from her predecessor and mentor, former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (2003-2010). Now, the president will face the crisis at Petrobras and the economic slowdown.

When she was elected for the first time, in 2010, the country grew 7.5 % and the annual inflation reached 5.9%. In 2014, the year of her re-election, the expected growth is 0.2% and the inflation is close to the official target of 6.5%.

Translated by JULIANA CALDERARI

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	Sérgio Lima/Folhapress
	Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff attends a breakfast with journalists at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, on December 22