The Independent Movement Of Local Governments In Brazil Emerges Because Of Passive State Leaders In Handling COVID-19

Presiden Brasil Jair Bolsonaro (Instagram / @ jairmessiasbolsonaro)

JAKARTA - The increasing number of COVID-19 sufferers has forced many hospitals to rack their brains, looking for ways to get patients treated. Brazil, for example. Authorities built a makeshift hospital in their sports facility.

Like Indonesia, which utilizes the Athlete's Guesthouse Complex in Kemayoran as an emergency hospital, Brazil uses the Maracana sports complex in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as a temporary emergency hospital to help fight COVID-19. The complex includes the famous football stadium, Maracana Stadium.

The Maracana Stadium was previously used as the venue for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final as well as the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2016 Olympics. The stadium was first inaugurated for the 1950 FIFA World Cup and is one of the largest and most famous football stadiums in the world.

The other stadiums in Brazil that will serve as hospitals are the Pacaembu Stadium in Sao Paulo and the Mané Garrincha Stadium in Brasilia. Before being converted into a temporary health facility, the Brazilian Football Federation has suspended the national tournament season due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Rio de Janeiro authorities said they had not yet decided how many beds the Maracana Complex could afford. It is also unclear whether the temporary hospital will be built on top of the soccer field itself or elsewhere in the sports complex, which also includes a running track, field and water park.

In all, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's second most populous area, expects to build six temporary hospitals.

Passive President Bolsonaro

The number of COVID-19 cases in Brazil has reached more than 2,900 cases, of which 77 people have been confirmed dead. However, it is ironic, because Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is still underestimating the severity of the disease. He even kept comparing it with the flu.

Brazilian governors have imposed lockdowns and tried to expand medical facilities, even as Bolsonaro accused them of an economic slowdown. Bolsonaro also criticized the governors who made the church closure policy.

"This wave of panic and hysteria is bigger than the virus itself," Bolsonaro said in a speech broadcast live via Facebook.

Not standing still, the governors finally sent a letter to Bolsonaro. The letter outlines eight steps that Bolsonaro is proposing to take. For example, deferring state payments to the federal government and helping the state purchase medical equipment.

Sao Paulo's governor Joao Doria has been one of Bolsonaro's top critics during the public health crisis. He said he would continue to wait for concrete federal steps to take place within 72 hours.

Bolsonaro is under increasing pressure over the handling of his outbreak. An outbreak that he initially labeled "fantasy" and continues to be characterized as "the little flu."