Bolsonaro says the best vaccine for Covid is getting Covid

Brazilian president contracted coronavirus back in July

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gestures during the inauguration ceremony of his new Tourism Minister Gilson Machado (not depicted) at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, on December 17, 2020. Mr Bolsonaro has suggested that the best vaccine for coronavirus is contracting coronavirus. (AFP via Getty Images)

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has suggested that the “best vaccine” for coronavirus is Covid itself, despite the virus having killed tens of thousands of people in the South American country. 

Mr Bolsonaro made the comments during a live broadcast on his social network, according to Brazilian daily newspaper Folha de S.Paulo.

The world leader had been greeting supporters in São Francisco do Sul, where neither he nor many of his supporters wore face masks, when a man handed him a mask as a gift.

“I don’t use it, but that’s okay,” Mr Bolsonaro reportedly told the supporter. 

“I had the best vaccine. It was the virus,” he said, adding that he had experienced “no side effects” from having coronavirus.

The Brazilian president tested positive for the virus back in July after developing symptoms.

While he recovered, 197,732 people in Brazil have lost their lives to the virus since the pandemic began, according to an online tracker maintained by the Johns Hopkins University.

On Tuesday alone, Brazil recorded 963 deaths from Covid-19, with 55, 799 positive cases identified.

The country currently has the third highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the world, with more than 7.8 million positive tests identified. 

The US has seen the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 21 million Covid cases confirmed.