Kimberly Dudeck

Comprehensive Chapter Review

Chapter 13: An Unreformed Leviathan
On June 6, 2013, thousands of protestors gathered in the center of So Paulo to
object an unnecessary raise in public transportation costs. In Brazil, social classes C, D
and E make up more than 80 percent of the population, and spend an average of three to
four hours a day on public transportation (263). The rally started to progress into a fullblown riot on June 13, which resulted in military police using brutal tactics in order to
suppress the mob of angry citizens. This act of violence irritated the majority of
Brazilians causing them to join in the protest, as well. At the peak of the gathering on
June 20, a total of more than a million people demonstrated in eighty cities across the
country (263). It was clear that the increase in bus fares was not the only issue presented
here. There were many other underlying frustrations as well, such as the poor quality of
health care, public transport, and schools. In response to the protests, Dilma consulted
Lula and other political leaders in order to come up with a plan. She then proposed five
pacts to the people of Brazil. These pacts included promises to spend more on public
transport and education, and to import foreign doctors to work in remote areas, to restate
the governments commitment to fiscal responsibility, and to bring political reform to the
country (265).
Even though the countrys level of economic development is above average, the
federal government of Brazil administers expensive taxes that Brazilians cannot afford,
and spends loads of money, that they technically do not have, on unnecessary provisions.
It seems that the last thing on the mind of government officials is public spending and

investing, which, in reality, should be their main focus. After the collection of taxes, the
federal government keeps more than half of the payments, while the remainder is split
amongst the states and municipalities of Brazil, causing the funds for public spending to
be widely dispersed. Regarding the transfers, the federal government gets 58 percent of
total revenue and the states and municipalities 42 percent (272). Throw in other
obligatory items of national spending, such as wages, pensions and debt service, and
there is very little money leftover for communal funds.
In order for public spending needs to match that of an evolving society, it is
essential for the government to dedicate more resources to health and education, and less
to the machinery of government, privileged interest groups, and pensioners (272). A
recent decline in fertility rate has resulted in what is known as a demographic bonus.
This means that as of right now, the working-age population is at its largest in relation to
dependents (children and old people) (272). According to IBGE, this bonus will run
out as early as 2018, and the working-age population will begin to shrink by the mid2020s (272-273). In turn, the population of elderly people in Brazil will skyrocket
resulting in a significant increase in the governments pension spending. If the
government can figure out a way to spend less capital on pensions, perhaps by
disconnecting the association between minimum wage and pension benefits, it could use
the extra money to improve the quality of its schools and public health care.
A huge portion of public spending money is lost to government corruption. There
are many cases where millions of reais have been siphoned out of communal funds in
order to pay for a Congress members family vacation or honeymoon. In December of
2010, Congress voted to raise its own salaries by 62 percent, bringing them into line

with those of the supreme courts, which was around US$13,000 a month in 2013 (275).
Brazilian society has begun to fight back against these severe wrongdoings, but they need
the help of government reformers in order to do so. A combination of a more effective
judiciary, and an electoral system that promotes the accountability of politicians to voters,
would create a strong defense system against government corruption. Hopefully
Brazilians are able to get the assistance they are in desperate need of. I was absolutely
shocked to see how much money Brazils government wastes on luxuries and
administration perks.