Gvt's lower approval rating reflects present moment, says justice minister

Justice Minister José Eduardo Cardozo said that the survey published by polling institute Datafolha on Wednesday (Mar 18) is “a photograph of the moment.” The study, conducted Monday and Tuesday, indicates that 62% of Brazilians describe President Dilma Rousseff's administration as bad or terrible.

“That's a feature of photography: it photographs the moment, but it doesn't capture the reality being photographed,” he stated.

In the survey, 13% of respondents evaluate the government positively, whereas 24% rate Rousseff's administration as OK. Overall, 2,384 people were heard. The study's margin of error is two percentage points.

The previous poll, released early in February also by Datafolha, showed Rousseff with the positive assessment of 23% of respondents, against 44% who think her government is bad or terrible.

According to the data, it is the first time the percentage of people who disapprove of the government goes beyond 50%. The central-west and southeast regions observed the highest rejection ratings—75% and 66% respectively. The highest approval ratings are still found in the north, with 21%, and the northeast, where a mere 16% approve of the current government.

Minister Cardozo argues that the figures must serve as food for thought, but he firmly believes they will be reversed over time: “I'm totally convinced that President Dilma Rousseff will show a great performance over the course of her 4-year term, just as she did in her previous tenure, and will show all Brazilians that all of their flags, the flags that kept her in power for a second term, will be fully satisfied, with the construction of a country that develops itself more and more through justice and the permanent fight against corruption and social exclusion.”

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira