BUENOS AIRES (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th December, 2022) Outgoing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro does not intend to attend the inauguration of President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on January 1 and will instead travel to the United States, media reported Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, the presidential plane left for the US city of Orlando in central Florida, one of Bolsonaro's possible destinations. This plane is usually used to prepare for presidential visits and takes off a few days before the trip, the Globo newspaper reported.
The authorities' official bulletin published an authorization for a security officer to travel to Miami to ensure the safety of Bolsonaro's family, the report read. The officer will accompany the country's First Lady Michelle Bolsonaro, according to the report.
Earlier in the week, media reported that Brazil's outgoing president will skip his successor's inauguration on January 1, 2023, and will not hand over the presidential sash to Lula, planning instead to spend New Year's Eve at former US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort complex in Florida.
Lula, 76, will become the leader of Brazil for the period of 2023-2027. This will be his third term. Lula headed Brazil for two consecutive terms between 2003 and 2010 but a series of corruption allegations resulted in his imprisonment. He began serving his 12-year sentence in 2018, but Brazil's Supreme Court later annulled the case and Lula was released from prison in 2019.
