A high-ranking official from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, warned that the upcoming Olympic games could be doomed due to budget constraints, which may compromise security and mobility during the competitions.
According to a New York Post report, the city’s acting Governor, Francisco Dornelles, is still awaiting a 2.9 billion Brazilian real (US$860 million) payout from the federal government that would shore up state coffers ahead of the event on August 5-21.
“How are people going to feel protected in a city without security?” Dornelles said in the report, adding that the funds allocated last week have not yet reached the state.
The chief also alerted that without the money, police patrols may grind to a halt by the end of the week for lack of gas money.
“I’m optimistic about the games, but I have to show reality,” he said. “We can have a great Olympics, but if some steps aren’t taken, it can be a big failure.”
Dornelles also addressed a problem with the city’s metro line which is meant to ferry tourists to the main Olympic venue in the far-western Rio area of Barra da Tijuca.
With just a month away to the games, the mass transport facility is still not ready for public use, since the federal loan aimed at finishing the project has yet to be released.
“I’ve said that without security and without the metro, there will be difficulties,” Dornelles said, while also describing the state’s health care system as “calamitous.”
Meanwhile, the biggest city in Brazil has been suffering from recession which saw the economy shrink by around 4 percent in 2015 and unemployment spike.
The state is highly reliant on sinking oil royalties, the report said, and prior governments awarded billions in tax exemptions that resulted in near-empty coffers. Khristian Ibarrola