The slain master of African dance culture, Romualdo Rosario da CostaThe slain master of African dance culture, Romualdo Rosario da Costa

From Adeyinka Olaiya, Sao Paulo, Brazil/

 

A 63-year-old teacher and master of the African dance martial arts called Capoeira, Mestre Romualdo Rosário da Costa, has been stabbed to death for opposing Far-right presidential candidate Jair Messias Bolsonaro, in Brazil.

Rosário da Costa was allegedly killed by 36-year-old Paulo Sergio Ferreira de Santana, a supporter of Bolsonaro, during an argument in a bar where the victim revealed that he voted against the presidential candidate.

According to eyewitnesses, Ferreira de Santana stabbed the African-Brazilian 12 times from the back in a bar in Salvador, Bahia, after a brief argument over the presidential candidates.

Paulo Sergio Ferreira de Santana
The suspected killer, Paulo Sergio Ferreira de Santana

He also injured the victim’s brother who tried to get in his way, when he launched the attack.

Moa de Katende, as the master of Capoeira, is fondly called, publicly declared his support for the leftist candidate Fernando Haddad.

The assassin allegedly flared up when the African cultural dancer declared his support for Haddad who represents the interest of the imprisoned ex-president Lula da Silva.

The police later moved in after the incident which occurred at about 11.45 pm.

According to them, the suspected killer was arrested as he was escaping out of town.

He told the police that he killed the victim for disagreeing with his political options.

The victim’s niece, Jasse Mahi, 27, told NewsmakersNG: “We have lost another African-Brazilian to violence, to ignorance, to racism, to racial and political intolerance.”

She called out to all African-Brazilians, Africans and the Yoruba communities in Brazil, as well as those who say NO to violence to “come and participate in the burial of this great man of African culture and tradition which shall start at exactly 16 hrs today October 10, 2018, in Salvador, Bahia.

Bolsonaro, cast in the mould of Donald Trump, easily won the first round of Brazil’s presidential election last Sunday, but he faces a run-off against the leftist rival in three weeks.

Bolsonaro, a 63-year-old former paratrooper vowing to crush crime in Latin America’s biggest nation, received 46 per cent of ballots — below the 50-per-cent-plus-one-vote threshold required for a first-round win, according to an official count of virtually all votes.

That means he will have to fight it out on October 28 with Haddad, who came in second at 29 per cent.

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