From October 2018 (Reign XXI) to March 2022 (Reign XXII). Minister of National Defense, João Gomes Cravinhohad a “Perfect Storm” in your ministry. And it lasted, practically, his entire tenure.
In addition to 45 contracts made by the General Directorate of National Defense Resourcesl – from 2019 to 2021 – that were investigated in the judicial operation of that name, there were other situations (see list below), non-criminal, at least unusual for the time being.
Such as having a “clandestine commission” reported by Visão, which was guaranteed pro bono, to conduct a study on the economics of defense. It was coordination Former Secretary of State, Marco Capitao Ferreiratarget of house searches and defendant in the aforementioned criminal investigation.
He also did not know, as he assured the deputies at the parliamentary hearing, that Captain Ferreira, the man he had chosen to lead a restructuring in the public defense industry, had received, according to Expresso, 61 thousand euros for five days to An opinion on a deal that has been nullified.
This payment was authorized by Alberto Coelho, former director general of the Directorate General of National Defense Resources (DGRDN), one of the 73 suspects of the “Perfect Storm” operation.
João Gomes Cravinho handed over the ministry to Helen Carreiraswith the judicial investigation already underway, with Coelho under suspicion because of the failure of the rehabilitation works of the former Hospital Militar de Belém (HMB), but also with the much-lauded restructuring of IdD – Portugal Defense (holding company that owns the state shares in the defense industry) without annual accounts.
a confidence in Marco Capitao Ferreira and Alberto Coelho was solid for the new minister. Even because they were both invited to give classes at the Institute of National Defense (IDN), when he was still driving it in 2021.
Remember at this point, Coelho had already been inspected by the Inspectorate General of National Defence (IGDN) and was charged with various financial responsibilities and illegalities, which were made public.
Helena Carreiras invited, as she assumed in parliament, Captain Ferreira for Secretary of State and also the supported an appeal against the Court’s decisionwhich failed a five million contract to be paid by the Navy to IdD for the management of ocean patrol vessel acquisitions.
Only recently and in response to cases that have been made public, Helena Carreiras announced that she had strengthened inspection mechanisms in her ministryas well as asking the TdC to check IdD, whose management has never questioned it despite the warning signs.
What Cravinho didn’t see
Operation “Perfect Storm”
you 45 contracts under suspicion those presented in the indictment of the Public Prosecution Service (MP), withheld on August 10, were all performed during the mandate of João Gomes Cravinho.
The first in September 2019 and the last in early 2021. 73 companies and individuals were charged, seven with responsibilities at the MDN, including Alberto Coelho, the former director general of the Directorate General of National Defense Resources; Paulo Branco, former director of financial management services; and Francisco Marques, former director of infrastructure and heritage services.
a combination of these three leaders, according to the MP, created the so-called “Perfect Storm” for the alleged plans, which took place in the middle of the pandemic, in exchange for compensation, in hiring companies that will have harmed the state about a million euros.
The slip at Belém Military Hospital
It’s almost a “case study” of at least one example of stubbornness. It was already public and notorious that there had been a slippage in the cost of the rehabilitation works of the old HMB – from 750 thousand euros – and Cravinho continued to write off sentences like “that’s money you can’t waste” and who represented “a important asset for the country”.
He also appointed Alberto Coelho, at the suggestion of Marco Capitão Ferreira, as chairman of the board of directors of one of the state-owned defense companies, ETI. He later admitted that this appointment had been a “mistake”, but justified it by the fact that there were no suspicions of crimes at the time.
five million contract
The contract devised by Marco Capitão Ferreira to finance IdD with five million, of which he chaired at the invitation of Cravinho, obvious irregularities. Neither the minister nor the rest of the government, which was approved by the council of ministers, saw the evidence. It provided for payment by the Navy of approximately five million euros to IdD to manage the acquisition program of the six ocean patrol vessels. A service that the Navy is technically and legally authorized to provide free of charge. He was twice rejected by the Court of Auditors.
The restructuring of defense industries
Promised in 2020, with Marco Capitão Ferreira at the head of the IdD holding companythe restructuring of public defense industries has to happen. After spending 330,000 euros in the first year on works (part of which was carried out by one of the companies involved in Perfect Storm) on the new head office and consultancy firms, a debt of 3.6 million euros remained to Finance.
Looks like the weight of gold
In March 2019, Marco Capitão Ferreira received 61 thousand euros for an opinion issued in five days, paid by Alberto Coelho, on the maintenance contracts for the EH-101 helicopters, after they had already been withdrawn by the minister. Cravinho said in parliament that he did not know.
ghost advisor
In February 2021, Marco Capitão Ferreira hired José Miguel Fernandes, former president of Arsenal do Alfeite who had resigned from his position for “personal reasons”, to advise IdD and prepare a study, in which, according to the weekly magazine Expresso, none participated. It was said to be about a ‘ghost’ consultancy, for which he was given no work.
What Helena Carreiras didn’t see
Illegality of the terminated contract
Three months after taking office, the Court rejected a contract worth €5 million that required the navy to pay IdD to administer the tender to purchase six ocean patrol vessels (NPOs).
The idea came from Marco Capitão Ferreira, when he was president of the IdD, with the support of Cravinho. However, the minister ignored the warnings made public, not only by specialists in statements to the DN, but also by the judgment of the TdC itself, and supported her secretary of state in the appeal against the decision.
“Risks of impediment to competition”, “high permeability between government positions in the defense sector and management positions in state-controlled companies in the same sector”, “possible covert financing of public entities/societies” and “situations of distortion of the internal market” , were some of these warnings.
And the Court failed again, emphasizing that this contract was “fulminated with nullity”.
Lessons at IDN
Already Albert Coleho had been audited by the Inspecção-Geral da Defesa Nacional (IGDN) and had been accused of various financial responsibilities and illegalities, which were made public when Helena Carreiras, as Director of the National Defense Institute (IDN), in 2021, invited him to teach a graduate course in national defense law.
“The new investment approach resulting from the Military Programming Act” was the theme.
Also Marco Capitao Ferreira was invited to teach two lessons in this course on “Defense Economics Management”.
ID accounts
When he invited Marco Capitão Ferreira to become Secretary of State, he had left IdD, which he had promised to restructure, with the bills for 2020 and 2021 still to be approved (those for 2021 will only be approved at the general assembly in September) , with a debt to be financed of 3.6 million and with expenses for works, furniture and advice amounting to 330 thousand euros; It is paid without any income (until today), despite being installed in a state property violation of the onerosity principleprovided for in the state budget law.
Source: DN
