The president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), indicated today (17) that the House should resume remote work, and should only return to face-to-face activities in March, after Carnival. The return to remote activities, however, has not yet been made official, but Lira said that the measure is necessary in view of the increase in the number of cases of covid-19 in recent weeks, especially of the new variant, Ômicron.
“Remote work until Carnival. Necessary measure until we win this new wave. It will also help us in the best application of public resources”, said Lira through her Twitter.
The House and Senate have been in recess since December 23 and resume legislative activities on February 2.
Face-to-face activities resumed at the Chamber on October 25 of last year, after 18 months of suspension of face-to-face work at the House, which started in March 2020. During this time, activities were carried out in a hybrid way.
With the resumption of face-to-face activities, the Board of Directors adopted some rules for the entry of people into the House, among them the presentation of a “vaccination passport” for entry into the Chamber.
According to the rules, anyone who wants to enter the premises of the Chamber, has to present the vaccination card, with at least one dose taken, “observing the vaccination schedule established by Organs competent bodies”.
In addition to the presentation of the vaccination card, there will also be a temperature measurement. Anyone with a temperature above 37.5º will be prohibited from entering. It is also mandatory to wear a mask, which must cover the nose and mouth.
Senate
In the Senate, five senators announced that they tested positive for covid-19 in the last week. Congress is in recess until February and most senators are in their states.
Jorginho Mello (PL-SC) reported today (17), on social media, that he tested positive. According to him, this is the second time he has contracted the virus. On Wednesday (12), it was the turn of Mecias de Jesus (Republicans-RR) to announce his contamination. He pointed out that the symptoms were mild and attributed this to the vaccination.
On the same day, Fabiano Contarato (PT-ES) also informed about his positive test. In addition to him, her husband and one of their children also tested positive.
The day before (11), it was Marcelo Castro (MDB-PI) turn to break the news about his diagnosis. On Monday (10), Senator Luis Carlos Heinze (PP-RS) announced his infection and that of his wife. According to his advice on his social network, both had mild symptoms.
Three senators who served in this legislature died because of the virus: Arolde de Oliveira, Major Olímpio and José Maranhão.
* Collaborated with Marcelo Brandão