Brazilian President Bolsonaro's COVID-19 Test Result Negative

JAKARTA - After several weeks of quarantine at his residence, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said the results of the COVID-19 test he had underwent negative for the umpteenth time.

In a photo posted on social media, Bolsonaro appears with a box of hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug that is believed to have treated his infection even though there is no strong scientific evidence that it works against COVID-19.

Complementing the photo, the president wrote that the RT-PCR test for Sars-Cov 2 was negative.

Bolsonaro did not say when he would undergo the test or if he would provide further details.

Bolsonaro said he had tested three times for COVID-19 this month, including his initial diagnosis on July 7.

Since then, Bolsonaro has been in isolation at the presidential residence by filling out his official agenda via video conferencing. Occasionally the president is seen outside the house, for example when greeting his supporters.

Launched by Antara on Sunday, Bolsonaro is one of the more than 2.3 million Brazilians infected with COVID-19. The country, which reports more than 85,000 deaths, is the second flashpoint for the pandemic in the world after the United States.

Bolsonaro downplays the risk of the COVID-19 virus, describing it as a "mild flu". He also opposed public health experts and criticized the COVID-19 lockdown, which was imposed by a number of governors and mayors in his country.

The right-wing populist warns that such a policy is worse than the virus itself. He urged that economic business be reopened.

Bolsonaro said he would begin visits across the country after recovering from the disease.