Though not a focus of this article, Brazil's public servants also are a massive draw on Brazil's finances when it comes to pensions. I calculated that the pensions paid to public servants are competitive with Portugal's (with Portugal at more than twice the GDP per capita)! And this is in a situation where Portugal also overpays public servant pensions vs. the rest of the population. It's downright amazing.
In the past, when comparing Brazil to China and Russia, I argued that Brazil is in a very risky spot. Brazil straight out looks fiscally unsustainable.