The Minister of Territorial Cohesion, Ana Abrunhosa, assured that she has never had any direct or indirect involvement in approving applications or granting European aid, in an article responding to the controversy over the financing of her husband’s company.
In an article published Monday in the Público newspaper entitled “Caesar’s wife is serious”, Ana Abrunhosa pointed out that some reports of the approved support for the company in which her husband is a partner “deliberately left the insinuation in the air.” that this support was only possible” because she is a member of the government and assured that she has no interference in the management of the businesses of her husband, who was a “long-time entrepreneur, son and grandson of entrepreneurs” before she became invited to government functions.
“To make it absolutely clear, neither I nor any of my secretaries of state have ever had any intervention, directly or indirectly, in the process of approving candidatures, nor in allocating any financial aid,” the minister said.
“I want to make it clear that I have always acted lawfully in the performance of my duties, that I have always fulfilled my duty of impartiality and that I have always performed the tasks entrusted to me with complete transparency,” she repeated, also emphasizing that she does not pursue her husband’s affairs, who is married under a regime of separation of property.
The minister emphasized that the companies in which her husband participates are included in his single declaration of income, assets, interests, incompatibilities and impediments, submitted to the Constitutional Court, and that, when he became aware of this matter, “for the sake of transparency and preventive”, first sought advice from the Legal Services, Audit and Inspection Directorate of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and later the Advisory Council of the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Both opinions were in the sense that there is no impediment for the spouse of the Minister of Territorial Cohesion to apply for public funds and receive approved funds, because this “is not achieved in principle by the concept of public procurement “.
“I did all this not because I had doubts, I repeat, but so that in the scrutiny to which we are subjected as rulers – and well – there would be no doubt,” he underlined.
Faced with “the lack of legal arguments”, the minister ruled that “there has been a trial in the public square in recent days”, which “finds refuge in morality, ethics and character attacks”.
“A moral judgment that reveals total ignorance of these rigorous mechanisms of European funds and that has already decided guilt regardless of explanation and understanding of the law,” he stressed.
The minister also believed that those who question “the smoothness of the process,” alleging that the Coordination and Regional Development Commissions (CCDR), which manage community funds under their ministry’s oversight, are not aware of the proceedings.
Namely that these entities have presidents elected by the mayors of each region and have full autonomy in the decisions they make regarding the support they give, without being dependent, “as has now been done to believe in various media , upon any prior analysis or custody approval,” he wrote.
Ana Abrunhosa also emphasized that the approved project for the company in which her husband participates – “with a support of 133 thousand euros (and not the ‘hundreds of thousands of euros’ mentioned in some news stories)” – was part of a research and development project notice , so that the National Innovation Agency, an entity not supervised by the Ministry of Cohesion, “but in equal parts by the Ministry of Economy and Science, Technology and Higher Education”, has analyzed the merits of the application, and that ” always resorts to a panel of external and independent experts, with international recognition”.
The minister was of the opinion that “being able to apply for European aid is a right that all citizens and companies have”, so her husband, “citizen and entrepreneur, can never be privileged to be married to a minister”, but may also not be hindered by this reality”.
“If this is not the case, and if it is indeed considered fair that relatives of rulers are deprived of rights, such as the right to apply for European aid that is available to all Portuguese and in whose decision-making processes the rulers have no participation, then it is necessary to change the law. Let us bear in mind that, if that happens, we will expand even more a framework of oppression of rights and foster a climate of mistrust and permanent suspicion of the political class, making it even more difficult to get competent people into public service,” he warned.
Asked by journalists today, in the margins of the presentation of the feasibility, technical and environmental study of the Douro railway, which took place in Freixo de Espada à Cinta, in the Bragança district, Ana Abrunhosa referred to this article in Público.
“Everything I had to say I have already written,” said the Minister of Cohesion.
“Everything I had to say has already been said and the Prime Minister has already answered in the Assembly of the Republic,” he added, when asked if he felt comfortable staying in government.
PSD wants access to views of the Minister of Cohesion
The PSD wants the Minister for Territorial Cohesion to give parliament the advice she has asked for to assess a potential conflict of interest by companies run by her husband who has received public funds, an area under Ana Abrunhosa.
In a request released this Monday, Social Democratic deputies believe that, under the auspices of the entities responsible for managing public funds – the Coordination and Regional Development Commissions (CCDR) – under the authority of the minister, “the question of whether is an obstacle” under the regime to the exercise of functions by holders of political and senior public offices.
“It is known that the Minister of Territorial Cohesion had doubts on this matter and requested two opinions: one from the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and another from the Advisory Council of the Office of the Prosecutor General (PGR) they add. .
The PSD group therefore believes that Ana Abrunhosa should issue the above-mentioned advice to the Transparency Committee and the Statute of Deputies.
“Since we haven’t done this until now, we can only use this route – the application route – to access these opinions,” they justify.
In the debate with the prime minister in parliament last week, questioned by the Chega party, António Costa defended that the attorney general’s opinion is “unequivocal” about the absence of conflicts of interest.
Last Thursday, the Prime Minister began by stating that the Cohesion Minister presented him with “the problem of a conflict of interest” about a year ago.
“She herself has made a request for advice to the Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, who said there was no conflict of interest, my legal adviser confirmed the same matter,” said Costa, pointing out that, even so a advice to the Attorney General’s Advisory Board on the matter “taking into account the sensitivity of the issue”.
The opinion, issued on May 27, 2021, “is unequivocal in several respects” and “says very clearly that there is nothing to indicate that the validity of the act authorizing the application, nor of the act defining the grant, is affected. without registering the violation of behavioral obligations by the Minister of Territorial Cohesion,” said Costa.
Source: DN
