After just over six months, João Galamba resigned (again) as Minister of Infrastructure. In total, there were 196 days between the first request (submitted on May 2) and this Monday.
After the resignation, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, dismissed Galamba and also Pedro Cilínio, Secretary of State for the Economy, who also resigned (and a note from the ministry guarantees that his departure “will not be related to the subjects that the have been made public in recent days”). Marcelo and António Costa had planned a meeting for next Tuesday to discuss the future of the now former Minister of Infrastructure.
In a statement, João Galamba states that he resigned “after deep personal and family reflection and in view of the fact that, as a father and husband”,the government’s departure was the “only possible decision to guarantee the family the peace and discretion to which they are unequivocally entitled.” After all, he says that “the political conditions available to him to carry out his duties had not been exhausted”. And he adds: “This resignation does not imply and should not be confused with any responsibilities relating to what falls within the sphere of Justice.” Therefore, “as expected”, Galamba says he is “fully available to clarify any doubts regarding the execution” of the positions he has held since 2019.
The dismissal request came after last Friday during the joint budget hearing of the Budget and Finance and Economics, Public Works, Planning and Housing committees, João Galamba reiterated that he was not resigning. In May, Galamba resigned from the Ministry of Infrastructure following the stolen computer case, leading to the resignation of Frederico Pinheiro, his deputy at the time. But Prime Minister António Costa stopped Galamba and did not accept his resignation.
The now former minister states that during the five years he was in government, ‘as State Secretary for Energy, fully in accordance with the priorities of the European Union and the Government Program, he has always committed himself to the energy transition’. which he sees as a challenge that opens up “unique opportunities for technological, industrial development and greater energy independence” for the country.
In a two-page note, Galamba continues with an overview of the work he has done as governor, without ever making any reference to the Operation Influencerin which he is accused. “As Minister, I was committed to developing the country’s competitive advantages in digitalisation, decarbonisation and industrialization of its commercial ports, particularly in the wind energy value chain. offshoreand also in the field of laying and connecting submarine cables and creating the conditions for Portugal to become a competitive hub in the field of connectivity, storage and data processing,” he argues, in an indirect reference to data center in Sines, which is under suspicion by the authorities.
In response, Bernardo Blanco, deputy of the Liberal Initiative, believed that after the parliamentary commission of inquiry into TAP, the secret case and the lithium suspicions, “there were no longer conditions to continue for at least six months”. The deputy classifies Galamba’s stay in government as “almost surreal”. For the Left Bloc, parliamentary leader Pedro Filipe Soares, regarding the resignation of Galamba and the alleged departure of other members of the executive, was of the opinion that what is at stake is “a diversion of the attention of some members of the government to more attention ahead of the elections”. Inês Sousa Real, from PAN, stated that the departure was “inevitable” and that it was late. Finally, André Ventura, from Chega, said that the former minister is leaving “through the small door”. “João Galamba has no political or personal maturity,” he said, referring to last Friday’s statements during the budget hearing.
Galamba’s business
January 4, 2023: On this day – precisely when he joined Infrastructures, replacing Pedro Nuno Santos – RTP’s Friday at 9 program shows a report on the lithium and green hydrogen exploration activities, involving João Galamba, as Secretary of State for Energy. The former government official claims he “would have committed a crime” if he had overturned the order that attributed lithium exploration to LusoRecursos. After the report was released, he responded on Twitter, classifying the program as “manure,” “a disgusting thing.”
April 26, 2023: It is the night that motivated much of João Galamba’s political vulnerability. As Minister of Infrastructure, he dismissed his deputy, Frederico Pinheiro. There have been reports of theft of a ministry computer. The Public Security Police and the Security Information Service (SIS) are called to recover the device. There have also been complaints about attacks by Frederico Pinheiro on people who worked at the Ministry of Infrastructure. The case received a lot of media attention and led to Galamba submitting his first resignation on May 2. Against the wishes of Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the Prime Minister rejects the proposal and Galamba remains in the government.
November 7, 2023: The day dawns with searches in various institutions, including São Bento, the prime minister’s official residence. There are detainees. At the center of the investigations are companies linked to lithium exploration and the construction of a data center in Sines. João Galamba is named a defendant.
November 10, 2023: Three days after he was accused, Galamba refused to resign during a hearing in parliament.
November 13, 2023: João Galamba resigns for the second time. Now he is leaving the government, weakened after several months and with the status of a defendant. Still, he says he does it for his family since he still had the resources to be in this position.
Source: DN
