October 28, 2022

16:10

Marcela Leiros – Amazon Agency

MANAUS – Two days before the election that will elect the next president of the Republic, and in the case of some states, a governor, voters in the Amazon await with expectation the results of the ballot box next Sunday, 2.

Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) are running for the post of head of the national Executive. In the Legal Amazon, Amazonas and Rondônia are the only ones that will hold a second round. The Amazon region includes Amapá, Tocantins, Acre, Roraima, and Pará. Mato Grosso in the Center-West region and Maranhão in the Northeast, are also part of the region, even though they are only partially formed by the Amazon biome.

Read also: ‘Tucuma’: indigenous writer from AP is inspired by the Amazon to write a book of children’s poetry

The AMAZON AGENCY asked, from Amazonian citizens, what challenges the next leaders will face, regarding the management of the region that concentrates the largest biodiversity on the planet, as well as what are the expectations for these leaders.

The journalist Ana Florêncio, from Roraima, pointed out that the preservation of the Amazon forest and the development of a sustainable economy are indispensable factors for the next leaders. She also emphasized the protection of the rights of native peoples, such as the indigenous ones.

“I hope, as an Amazonian, that the president [of the Republic] elected will look at our region with attention, respecting the native peoples, the diversity not only of the biomes, but of all beings. May he be a ruler who strengthens a sustainable economy and not a predatory and polluting one, as is happening now”.

Historical challenges

The amazonian musician Emerson Monteiro pointed out that the state has historical challenges, almost antagonistic, that must be faced: the infrastructure and the preservation of the forest.

“It is something that I directly notice in my state, Amazonas, we still have few hospitals in the countryside, few important works, besides a strong geographical isolation. On the other hand, there is the need for forest preservation. What is going to happen in the Amazon needs to be done with caution, with studies, with care in order not to cause more deforestation and to fight the environmental crimes that are already happening”, he detailed.

Preservation of the forest

In Tocantins, the university student Glenda Barros Moura said that she sees with concern what the people of Tocantins see as a priority. She points out that there is a lack of recognition of their identity as Amazonian people, and that many people discuss who they are going to vote for, but the options are rarely for candidates concerned with the environmental agenda.

“When you talk about a proposal here, everyone thinks about cattle ranching, soybean plantations, corn, those things”, she said. “So I think a big challenge for the future president and the politicians elected by Tocantins is to build an identity for our state that is more linked to the Northern Region, bring a sense of belonging, so that people here realize that we are the Amazon and we have to defend it”.

Read also: Initiative proposes actions for ‘Amazonia’ in the first 100 days to elected governments

A differentiated look

The indigenous writer Lucia Morais Tucuju, from the Kumarumã village, in Macapá (AP), defends that the next leaders need to have a “differentiated look” at the Amazon, both in social issues and in environmental preservation.

“We hope that the next government will have a different look at the Amazon, both in health and education, fundamental pillars for a human being to be able to live decently. We also hope that it will take care of nature, provide opportunities for indigenous people, caboclos, and river dwellers.
Humanized treatment with public policies of social inclusion for the Brazilian people and workers”, he pointed out.