The now former Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister, Vítor Escária, will have influenced António Costa to make decisions favorable to the interests of the Start Campus society, according to the indictment of the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP), after also killing several people and had put pressure on entities.
According to the warrant accessed by Lusa, Vítor Escária, who was detained on Tuesday and awaiting interrogation, “made himself available to provide support in whatever was necessary to overcome obstacles to the progress of the project” of the ‘data center ‘. ‘ developed by that company for Sines, with the aim of “giving greater speed to relevant administrative and legislative procedures”.
The MP also states that António Costa’s former chief of staff “did not hesitate to respond to the requests” of Diogo Lacerda Machado, a friend of the Prime Minister and consultant for Start Campus, to get the government to “positive, illegal make decisions”. acts as quickly as possible, including the Prime Minister, the Ministers of Environment and Infrastructure and the State Secretaries of Energy.”
Among the evidence on the defendant’s behavior, the MP mentions a telephone conversation on September 15, 2021 with the then Secretary of State for Energy, João Galamba, in which he called Vítor Escária “with the aim of urging the latter to convince the Prime Minister to intervene intervene” in the modification of the Special Conservation Zone (ZEC) in Sines to allow the construction of the entire data center project.
The first phase of construction ultimately took place on the edge of land not covered by the ZEC and the environmental impact assessment (EIA) was waived. However, the rest of the project needed AIA, with Vítor Escária guaranteeing Start Campus administrator Afonso Salema and Diogo Lacerda Machado that “AlA would make a favorable decision”, which happened.
The MP also understands that a conversation between Vítor Escária and Lacerda Machado, in early 2023, resulted in pressure on the Secretary of State for Energy, Ana Fontoura Gouveia, “exercised by the Prime Minister or by Vítor Escária, but necessarily with the knowledge and agreement of the former “, so that the government official could resolve issues related to the project.
According to prosecutors, the actions of the prime minister’s former chief of staff were also decisive for the (yet unpublished) decision on submarine cables, as its conclusion and signing last September “was accelerated” by his influence to, at least indirectly, protect the interests of Start Campus, defendant in the lawsuit.
The indictment also indicates that Vítor Escária took advantage of his proximity to the Prime Minister and put pressure on the president of the Sines Municipal Council, Nuno Mascarenhas, in favor of the company’s interests.
Vítor Escária is charged with influence peddling and criminal mischief. About 75,000 euros were found in his office, with the MP arguing that the former chief of staff “wanted and managed to conceal its illegal origin, in order to reintroduce it into the legitimate economy, knowing well that such an amount resulted of committing a crime. “, although his defense has already assured that the money comes from activities prior to his position.
Source: DN
