Anthony Garotinho, the Republicanos candidate for governor of Rio de Janeiro, participated in a debate hosted by CBN and the newspapers O Globo, Extra and Valor. During the event, he stated that his public security plan has no relation to the Pacifying Police Unit, but could not reveal complete details of the project.
The candidate explained that his plan would be a kind of "BOPE 2.0," with extensive study behind it, but that the information could not be revealed so that criminals would not find out. According to him, this BOPE would have 5,000 men in total, with 600 to 700 men from this special force needed for occupation operations, depending on the size of the area.
Garotinho detailed that the operation would include prior mapping of locations where weapons, drugs and arrest warrants for criminals in the region are, with participation from the civil police and the intelligence sector. He argued that simply sending in the police is not enough, and that what he called a "social troop" is also necessary.
The candidate stated that the social troop would bring programs for youth, health and education, arguing that 99% of community residents are honest and are being oppressed. With this, he defended the need to combine police actions with social policies for the recovery of territories.
