Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced on Monday from his official residence at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia that he will be taking another COVID-19 test after testing positive last week. Having been in quarantine for nearly a week, he stated that he "can't stand" being in isolation and added saying the result of the upcoming test, scheduled to be made known on Tuesday, "should be out in a few hours.” He also said during his telephone interview with CNN Brazil, "I will wait quite anxiously because I can't stand this routine of staying at home. It's horrible,".

The far-right president has drawn heavy criticism since the beginning of the pandemic for not taking the crisis seriously and questioned the containment orders that were ordered across the Brazilian states by the governors. President Bolsonaro said during his interview that he feels "very well" and added that he is not experiencing any fever or facing any trouble while breathing. Furthermore, he said that he has not lost his sense of taste, which is a common symptom of the novel coronavirus. 

Hopeful of resuming his duties in a week's time, the 65-year-old said, "Tomorrow, I don't know if the new test will confirm (the virus), but if everything is fine, I'll go back to work. Of course, if it's the other way around, I'll wait a few more days,". He also said, "Otherwise everything is fine. We are working by video conference all the time and we are doing our best not to let things accumulate,".

Brazil is the second worst-affected country in the world due to the coronavirus after the United States. The country has 72,833 deaths linked to the disease, which has left more than 1.8 million testing positive. 

President Bolsonaro, during his weekly Facebook Live post, last Thursday, stated that he had begun taking one hydroxychloroquine tablet every day since he tested positive for coronavirus. Generally used to fight malaria, several nations around the world have been adopting the drug for treating COVID-19 despite its effectiveness not completely proven to date with the subject still leaving many in the global scientific community divided. He said, "I took (hydroxychloroquine) and it worked, and I'm fine, thank God. And let those who criticize it at least offer an alternative,".