Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro has tested positive for coronavirus the second time.
The president first tested for COVID-19 on July 7 where he has been confined at the presidential palace alongside other people who had already contracted the virus.
The president announced on Wednesday that he still has the virus despite undergoing a new test the day before.
"I'm fine, thank God. Yesterday morning, I took the test, and in the evening the result was that I am still positive for the coronavirus," he said during a live broadcast on his Facebook page.
However, Bolsonaro stated that he is not experiencing symptoms since he has been taking anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine from the time he was diagnosed for COVID-19 a week back.
He insisted that the drug has helped him to deal with the virus despite scientists saying there was no medical evidence to support its effectiveness.
"I am not recommending anything. I recommend that you talk to your doctor. In my case, a military doctor recommended hydroxychloroquine, and it worked," he said
The anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine has recently been pushed as a treatment for Covid-19 in many countries through its effectiveness has not been formally proven.
The presidential press office said in a brief statement that Bolsonaro who is at 65 is at high risk and therefore he will be quarantined at the official Alvorada Palace residence, where he will continue to work by videoconference.
Not only taking part in video calls, but Bolsonaro has also seen feeding rheas -- a bird species native to South America that is related to the ostrich and emu -- in the gardens of the official residence.
The 65-year-old president had recently said that he "can't stand this routine of staying at home" and said he was waiting "anxiously" to be given the all-clear to leave the house, during a telephone interview with CNN on Monday.
Since the start of the outbreak four months ago, Bolsanaro has downplayed the seriousness of the epidemic, criticizing Brazilian governors for imposing restrictions to slow the spread of the virus.
Brazil is the second worst-hit country in the world by the coronavirus after the United States, nearing to 2 million cases with more than 75,000 deaths.
Comentários