Virus positive Bolsonaro to keep focus on economy

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro said Tuesday he has tested positive for COVID-19 after months of downplaying the coronavirus's severity while deaths mounted rapidly inside the country.

He said he is taking hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malaria drug that has not been proven effective against COVID-19.

"I thought I had it before, given my very dynamic activity. I'm president and on the combat lines. I like to be in the middle of the people." Bolsonaro said.

Bolsonaro has often appeared in public to shake hands with supporters and mingle with crowds, at times without a mask. He has said that his history as an athlete would protect him from the virus and that it would be nothing more than a "little flu" if he were to contract it.

He has also repeatedly said that there is no way to prevent 70% of the population falling ill with COVID-19 and that local authorities' efforts to shut down economic activity would ultimately cause more hardship than allowing the virus to run its course.

Bolsonaro repeated those sentiments Tuesday, likening the virus to a rain that will fall on most people and saying that some, like older people, must take greater care.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) adressed Bolsonaro's recent confirmation, wishing him a speedy recovery during this treatment.

Marcos Espinal, Chief of the Department of Communicable Diseases at the PAHO said that "the virus is unpredictable, and it doesn't respect race, color, powerful people, no matter the security around any president."

In the streets supporters and opponents of Bolsonaro reacted differently to the news of the head of the country being infected with Covid-19.

"He is collecting what he sowed" said Wesley Marielo, a 24 years old student "I hope he reviews what he thinks and tries to improve the situation".

Walking in the crowded neighbourhood of Penha, in Rio de Janeiro, Silas Ribeiro agrees with the speech of the president "He is showing that we can't be so scared….We have to have courage. It's like a flu, we are always exposed"

Brazil, the world's sixth-biggest nation, with more than 210 million people, is one of the outbreak's most lethal hot spots.

More than 65,000 Brazilians have died from COVID-19, and over 1.5 million have been infected.

Both numbers are the world's second-highest totals, behind those of the U.S., though the true figures are believed to be higher because of a lack of widespread testing.