Brazil’s interim President Michel Temer is optimistic that the country will stage a successful Rio Games, despite facing health and financial turmoil ahead of the August 5-21 Olympics.
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“There will not be a lack of security at the Rio Olympics, no way, no how”, Jungmann said at a press conference created to allay fears that a public-sector cash crunch in Brazil would lead to cutbacks in safety measures.
“If necessary, we will mobilise even more”, Jungmann said and added that 6,000 soldiers have already been deployed here. The figure is more than double that used for the London 2012 Olympics.
Brazil is witnessing one of the country’s worst recessions since the 1930s, while concerns over the Zika Virus, high crime rates, infrastructure delays and political unrest have led to mounting scepticism about the viability of the Rio Games.
“The government didn’t pay (the pensionsof) retired workers saying that the money was for Olympic construction projects”.
“The country has put together a solid security program.to ensure that sporting events take place in an atmosphere of absolute peace and tranquility”, Brazil’s interim president Michel Temer said.
The 80-85,000 security force includes regular police, officers from the elite federal police Forca Nacional, and servicemen including soldiers, marines and units from the air force, which is enforcing air security over Rio. The military component is 40,000 strong, with some 22,000 in Rio.
“I remember that during the 2014 World Cup, when 1.4 million foreign tourists visited Brazil, a much awaited epidemic never happened”.
Most of the protesters late Wednesday were teachers who have been on strike for three months demanding payment of back wages.
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Brazil’s Minister of Defense Raul Jungmann (R) listens to Brazil’s Minister of Justice Alexandre de Moraes during the press conference held at the Comando Militar do Leste (CML), in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 6, 2016.
