Brasilia - Beyond the contested pension and labor reforms, disillusionment with the coup lie also fuels today''s general strike, branded as the largest in Brazil''s history, according to the country''s trade union leaders.

What mobilizes the strike is (Michel) Temer; the misfortune he brings to the country with the paralysis of the economy, the lack of hopes of the Brazilian people, the lie that they made believe with the coup against Dilma (Rousseff) saying it would solve the problems and the country would grow again, Vagner Freitas said.

In statements made yesterday to the portal Sharp Conversation, the national president of the Central Trade Union Confederation (CUT) expressed his conviction that this Friday will be the largest general strike in the country.

This is a very strong movement that will also be influenced by 'the antics' made Wednesday by congresspersons to approve the damaging reform of the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT). 'That fueled, even more, the strike,' he remarked.

According to diverse sources, the main refineries of the country will be on stoppage today; in the populous city of Sao Paulo, the strike will be attended by at least 15 categories, including subway, railway, and teachers of public and private education, banking, metalworkers, health workers and public officials.

In Rio de Janeiro, meanwhile, metro officials are expected to strike, as well as bus drivers, education workers, civilian police officers, federal and labor justice workers, postmen and airmen.

It was also announced yesterday that the national strike will acquire great strength in the states of Ceará, Bahia and Minas Gerais, in the latter with the incorporation of four federal universities and more than 30 private schools and universities, among them the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC Minas).

The renowned singer Gal Costa also joined the general strike today in Brazil, who suspended the show she would offer tonight in the Acoustic Shell of Salvador de Bahia.

In addition to the trade union centers, the fronts Popular Brazil and Fearless People called for the force measurement against the reforms promoted by Temer, as well as diverse religious communities.

'Social rights in Brazil were conquered with intense democratic participation and any threat to them deserves immediate repudiation,' the Permanent Council of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) said in a recent statement.