Bacabal, a century: the hegemony of backwardness

Abstract

In 2020, the municipality of Bacabal completed 100 years. In addition to the party, this date requires citizens to seriously reflect on the economic and social development of this municipality that is located in the heart of Maranhão, 240 kilometers from the capital São Luís. Thus, in this article, we seek a theoretical framework of its political history, based on specialized bibliography. What stands out from our analysis is an authoritarian structure, composed of patrimonial, clientelist and corrupt practices. Inherited from the colonial period, this structure has been consolidated by oligarchies that take turns in power.Thus, the policy of delay is used as an instrument of power for local elites. While Brazil has experienced a democratic advance in its institutions for at least 30 years, in Bacabal, this transformation is not taking place, due to this policy of backwardness, which is restricting the action of progressive parties and movements. Because of this policy, Bacabalenses live in a façade of democracy, whose political hegemonies led by oligarchies control the municipality, reducing people's opportunities and concentrating income, that is, they keep Bacabal in a continuous stage of underdevelopment. But through semi-structured interviews, we found that, despite this oppressive structure, citizens resist in many ways, especially by speaking openly about such oppression.