Incumbent Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said goodbye to his supporters on Friday, taking to social media for the first time since his election defeat and wiping away a few tears with two days left in office.

The right-wing president, at the end of his term, did not specify whether he would pass the presidential scarf to his successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Sunday, as required by investiture protocol, as he plans to leave for the United States soon, AFP and Agerpres reported.

“The world will not stop turning on January 1 (…) We have a great future ahead of us,” Bolsonaro said. “We will lose battles, but we will not lose the war,” added the man who was narrowly defeated by left-wing leader Lula da Silva in October’s presidential election.

Jair Bolsonaro will soon leave Brazil for a trip to the United States, as the General Secretariat of the President has authorized the departure of employees responsible for the security of the “future former president” for a trip to Miami “between January 1 – 30, 2023”, reports Friday’s Official Monitor.

Bolsonaro made no mention of the trip but directly addressed his supporters, who continue to camp outside army barracks or headquarters in Brasilia and other cities to call for military intervention to prevent Lula from taking office.

“I never thought I’d be here,” Bolsonaro said through tears, before announcing that “at least I’ve postponed the collapse of Brazil with this evil left-wing ideology for four years.”

“I gave it my all,” continued the incumbent, whose four years in office are considered by most analysts to be very poor.

Outside his official residence at the Alvorada Palace, demonstrators watching the live broadcast shouted “coward” and “shame”.

Since Lula’s victory, which he never congratulated, Bolsonaro has been virtually isolated in Brasilia.