Â鶹´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Brazil's Bolsonaro's vaccination records are false, authorities say

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro looks at his cellphone before speaking to the press inside a restaurant in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Thomas Santos) Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro looks at his cellphone before speaking to the press inside a restaurant in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Thomas Santos)
Share
BRASILIA -

The vaccination records of Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro are false, the country's comptroller general's office said on Thursday after an investigation regarding the alleged tampering of information on his COVID-19 vaccination card.

The records show that Bolsonaro, a COVID-19 skeptic who publicly opposed the vaccine, received a dose of the immunizer in a public healthcare centre in Sao Paulo in July 2021.

The investigation concluded, however, that the former president had left the city the previous day and didn't leave Brasilia until three days later, according to a statement.

The nurse listed in the records as having applied the vaccine on Bolsonaro denied doing so and was no longer working at the centre. The listed vaccine lot was also not available on that date, the comptroller general's office said.

Registration of two other vaccine doses that would have been given to Bolsonaro was removed from his record even before the investigations began, it added, saying these were also fake.

Last May, Bolsonaro's home in Brasilia was raided by the federal police under the vaccine probe. Some of his aides were arrested and his cell phone was seized.

Bolsonaro has previously denied having knowledge of or ordering false information to be inserted into his vaccination records.

His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

During his tenure, Bolsonaro repeatedly downplayed the importance of immunization and social distancing measures during the pandemic. He often stated that he had not been vaccinated against the disease and would not do so.

He also dismissed the effectiveness of vaccines and spread fears about the possible side effects of immunization, going so far as to falsely associate the vaccine with the development of AIDS.

Bolsonaro was infected with COVID-19 in July 2020, nearly one year before the record of his first vaccine.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Debate gets testy as MPs consider confidence motion in PM Trudeau

MPs debated the first non-confidence motion of the fall House of Commons sitting today, seeing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre push once again for a snap election. But with votes secured to keep them afloat, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberals were quick to turn the discussion into a referendum on the Conservative alternative.

A city councillor in British Columbia says an online mob of "extremists" and "politically motivated hackers" is responsible for uncovering and publicizing a photo of him wearing a blackface costume to a Halloween party in 2007.

After Ontario Premier Doug Ford made controversial comments about solutions to get people out of homeless encampments, advocates and members of the opposition spoke up on Tuesday.

Four puppies were found near County Road 21 in Essa Township after a passerby spotted one when it ran out of the ditch and onto the road.

We've all had neighbours we didn't like, but two people from Sault Ste. Marie have been awarded more than half a million dollars for the 'extreme' behaviour of the people who lived next to them.

Local Spotlight

Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.

An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.

Fire has destroyed a barn and 17,000 plants at a family-owned business in Lower Coverdale, N.B.

Before influencers on social media, Canada’s Jeanne Beker was bringing the world of high fashion down to earth and as Calgary’s Glenbow Museum gets a major make-over, it will include a new exhibition showcasing the pop culture icon.

A sea lion swam free after a rescue team disentangled it near Vancouver Island earlier this week.

A Nova Scotian YouTuber has launched a mini-truck bookmobile.

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.