President Jair Bolsonaro announced on Thursday (18) the resignation of Abraham Weintraub of the Ministry of Education, after 14 months and ten days in which the then minister accumulated controversies but accomplished little. His resignation comes as a result of prolonged political wear and tear with the Supreme Court Justices.
Weintraub and Bolsonaro confirmed the resignation in a video posted on social media. In the recording, Weintraub says that "this time it's true." "I don't want to discuss the reasons for my departure," he said.
He said he received an invitation, endorsed by Bolsonaro, to be the representative director of Brazil and eight other countries at the World Bank, a multilateral development institution based in Washington (USA). The estimated annual salary is US$ 258,570, equivalent today to R$ 115.8 thousand per month without 13th, or more than three times the minister's current salary, of R$ 31 thousand.
Bolsonaro said little about Weintraub when making the announcement, which he called a "difficult time." "Trust you don't buy, you get it," he declared. The government has yet to announce Brazil's new Minister for Education and Culture—the third in a year and a half under Bolsonaro.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon