President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Wednesday (Dec. 17) that the government needs to find the “right narrative” to tell the Brazilian people about what has happened in the country in recent years. This morning, the president chaired the last ministerial meeting of 2025 at the official residence of Granja do Torto in Brasília.

In his view, the country is in a “largely favorable” situation, although, he went on to argue, this does not appear to be reflected as strongly as it should be in public opinion polls due to the political polarization faced by the nation. Lula stated that his team’s discourse needs to be defined for next year’s elections.

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“The election year will be the year of truth. In other words, we have to create the idea of a moment of truth to show who is who in this country, who does what in this country, what happened before us, and what happens when we come to power,” he told his ministers, citing initiatives in various areas, such as economy and social inclusion.

“We need to let the people know what happened in this country. I have the impression that the people still don’t know. I have the impression that we still haven’t come up with the right narrative to let the people know how to assess the things that happened in this country,” he added.

Lula said he will accept the resignation of ministers who want to run for office or seek reelection. In the 2026 election, a new president will be chosen – as well as governors, senators, plus federal, state, and district representatives.

The president also highlighted his team’s ability to negotiate measures of interest to the government in Congress – such as income tax exemptions and tax reform. In his opinion, the country is experiencing a “unique moment” from an economic point of view, partly due to the increased investment and financing capacity of public banks.

President Lula reaffirmed his policy, stating that money needs to circulate in the hands of the people. “We need to do much more, because my theory is that a little money in the hands of the people solves the problem. There is no macroeconomics, there is no exchange rate. If there is money in the hands of the people, our problem is solved – the problem of industrialization, consumption, agriculture, and inflation is solved,” he argued.

“We have ended the invisibility of the poor people of this country. We have ended the invisibility of a people who were only recognized during election season,” he went on to say.