So here we have a football loving nation hosting a major sporting event (that too football) after a very long wait. The Confederations cup! Next in line is world cup followed by Olympics couple of years down the line. In this season of joy, what could have possibly went wrong to bring more than a million people on the streets of Brazil protesting.
Is this football world cup bringing more trouble to Brazil than joy or do we have to look beyond the football world cup what the real reason is? Sao Paulo public transport increases the fare from R$3.00 to R$3.20, many other cities did the same. I wonder if this alone is a strong reason for so many people to start the protests. Surely the common man takes a pinch when the price of public transport rises. But this is happening across the globe. Clearly, price rise is not the only problem.
Well, then what is it. Maybe the infrastructure improvement doesn't reflect in the increased price. Work on the Sao Paulo metro has still not been completed yet. Maybe the fact that Brazilians on an average pay a 40.5% tax which is one of the highest in the world. The rising inflation isn't doing any good.
Will football help? Will it bring some prosperity to this struggling nation. Well, the answer to this question will answer part of the problem which brought millions of people on the streets of Brazil. Brazilians have put a lot of hope that this world cup and the revenue which it brings will improve Brazil.
Here's where the Brazilians were duped. They were told that 90% of the investment needed to build the infrastructure for the world cup (Stadiums et al) will be built using private sector funding. But exactly the opposite has happened. There has been 90% public investment in building up this infrastructure. The Taxpayer's money! The revenue generated from the World cup, much of it will go to the private sector. The Mariotts and the Hyatts of Brazil will be minting money during the cup due to the increased demand. Plus, lets say that the Brazil government does make profit out of the world cup by sales of tickets and stuff and recover the amount they invested, the rampant corruption will not help this money help benefit the people who really need it. Plus, for the match tickets themselves, Brazilians have to hope they are not overpriced to drill a hole in their pocket.
Looking at alternative solutions to the problem, backing out from the world cup is not a solution given that already so much money has been spent on it. The deeper problem of corruption must be addressed, private sector should help build the remaining work left on the stadiums. Look at India for instance. A cricket crazy nation, we got the chance to host the all famous world cup. But how much did an average middle class Indian get out of it? Apart from the pleasure of watching the game. How much improvement did the commonwealth games bring to the life of an Indian, not the pocket of Suresh Kalmadi.
Well, the football fans going to Brazil can do help in to some extend. Buy stuff from local streets of Brazil, help the common people by staying in homestays. Help grow the local tourism. If you have brought a ticket and cannot make it for the last moment, do not auction it on ebay, give it to someone who can give that ticket to some poor football fan in Brazil.
Enjoy the game. Good luck Brazil!!!
