Boy found alone in MG-181, mother suspected of abandonment and teacher celebrates announcement of betting ban

Hello!

Check out what was highlighted on g1 Triângulo this week, with the most accessed news between September 26th and October 2nd.

A 5-year-old boy was found walking alone near MG-181, in Brasilândia de Minas, on Friday (25). School staff located the child and took him to the school unit.

According to the Military Police (PM), the child was only wearing underwear and had marks on his shoulder.

The school management contacted the Guardianship Council and tried to locate those responsible for the boy. During the searches, the military were informed that the child's 26-year-old mother had contacted the Military Police to report her son's disappearance.

The woman said that she had applied a 'concealer' to the child and that, after that, the boy ran out, opened the house's gate and fled into the street.

The boy was taken to his maternal grandparents' house. The mother was taken to the Civil Police Station on suspicion of abandonment of an incapacitated person and bodily harm. She was interviewed and released.

For almost two years, Vânia de Souza Borges transformed her mourning for her son's death into a campaign against online betting. On Friday (25), upon learning that the federal government announced measures to ban betting and virtual games in Brazil, the Uberlândia teacher says she felt relief, but does not consider the fight over. She blames her son's death on bets.

The measure came just days after she sat face to face with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), in Brasília. At the meeting, Vânia shared the story of her son, Rafael Borges Amaral, who died in 2024 at the age of 26, and made a direct request: that the government not limit itself to regulating the sector.

Now, given the government's announcement, she says she sees the first concrete result of a mobilization that began after Rafael's death.

"Throughout this journey I have changed a lot, Vânia from before, who was often not heard, celebrates knowing that something is finally starting to be done. I feel that Lula understood when I said that it is necessary to nip the evil in the bud", he stated.

Every September, a scene repeats itself on the streets: children waiting for colorful bags, candies, lollipops, cakes and other treats distributed in the name of Cosme and Damião. For some families, it is a childhood memory. For others, a religious promise. For many, it is simply a tradition that spans generations.

Brazilian practice brings together elements of Catholicism and African-based religions. Cosmas and Damião, in Christian tradition, are remembered as twin brothers who practiced medicine and cared for the sick. In Brazil, devotion to saints met with religious traditions of African origin and they became associated with the Ibeji, twin deities linked to childhood.

The answer lies precisely in the party's relationship with childhood and the idea of ​​joy.

In Brazil, the association between Cosme and Damião and the Ibeji helped to consolidate the distribution of sweets as one of the best-known brands of the celebration. The practice also appears in Ibeji festivals and in different Afro-Brazilian traditions.

According to the researcher of African-based traditions at the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU) and babalorixá (role of supreme priest of a terreiro of Afro-Brazilian religions), Oloirê Costa, the sweet should not be understood just as a treat. It's a symbol.

“Candy is the symbol of happiness”, highlighted the researcher.

The logic lies in the experience of offering something sweet to another person: it is a way of wishing that their life is also sweeter.

Child found on the side of the highway, mother who lost her son and Cosme and Damião. — Photo: Arte g1

VIDEOS: see everything about the Triangle