Brazil's single day COVID-19 death tally rose above 3,000 for the first time as citizens of the South American nation staged protests demanding President Jair Bolsonaro take action to curtail the spread of the virus.
The lion share of Tuesday’s record 3,251 deaths occurred in its most populous state of Sao Paulo, with 1,021 new deaths.
During a national address Tuesday, protesters across the nation banged pots to express anger at the government’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak. Speaking to the nation, Bolsonaro expressed condolences for the lives lost, but once again said the virus will soon pass.
Bolsonaro, who has rejected restrictions imposed by local leaders said that by the end of the year, Brazil will have more than 500 million doses to inoculate all the population, saying 2021 will be the year of Brazilians’ vaccination.
He also predicted the people of the South American country will soon return to a normal life.
However, Bolsonaro's history in dealing with the more than year old pandemic doesn't appear to have generated much confidence among citizens.
Bolsonaro, who became infected with the virus last year, has consistently downplayed the seriousness of COVID-19, saying restrictions in the business sector to curtail the spread of the virus has been bad for the economy.
Brazil continues to lead Latin America with more than 12,000,000 infections and 295,425 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University Covid Resource Center.
