The Prime Minister said this Wednesday in Bissau that “it is always good” to be together with the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, and emphasized the importance of being together in celebrating 50 years of independence of Guinea-Bissau.
António Costa traveled to Guinea-Bissau on a Portuguese Air Force KC-390 aircraft that arrived at Osvaldo Vieira International Airport around 7 p.m.
Upon leaving the plane, the Prime Minister was received on the tarmac by the Head of the Civil House of the Presidency of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, Soares Sambu. He was then greeted in a room at the airport by the Guinean president, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, with whom he spoke.
Shortly afterwards, in statements to journalists, with the Guinean Foreign Minister, Carlos Pinto Pereira, at his sideAntónio Costa argued that “this is a very important visit” and avoided commenting on the current Portuguese political situation, following his resignation as prime minister.
Asked about the decision to take over the Infrastructure portfolio, after the resignation of Minister João Galamba, and about the state of his relationship with the President of the Republic, António Costa replied: “We are not going to talk about internal political issues, but it is always good to be with the President of the Republic.”
“But above all, it is important to be here together with the authorities of Guinea-Bissau, with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, with the President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, to celebrate 50 years of independence,” he added.
When asked if he regretted the decisions he made after the ‘Influencer’ operation, taking into account the developments in that legal process, António Costa refused to comment: “I admire your persistence, but let’s stick to what you brought us here. that’s 50 years of Guinea-Bissau”.
Guinea-Bissau was the first Portuguese colony in Africa to gain independence. Independence was unilaterally declared on September 24, 1973, after a decade of armed struggle.
The United Nations immediately recognized Guinea-Bissau’s independence, and Portugal only a year later, in September 1974, after April 25.
António Costa said that “Portugal recognized the independence of Guinea-Bissau only after April 25”, while “more than 90 countries had already done so”, and expressed “great satisfaction” with his involvement in the official celebration of this fiftieth anniversary. Thursday in Bissau.
“50 years ago we were still fighting each other, Portuguese and Guineans. Today, fortunately, fifty years later, we have peace, we live in freedom, we live in democracy,” he stressed.
The Prime Minister described the liberation of Guinea-Bissau as ‘a parallel struggle’ in the struggle against the dictatorship in Portugal and as a contributing factor to April 25, 1974: ‘The struggle of African peoples against colonialism has made a very important contribution contributed to our own liberation from dictatorship, and the liberation from dictatorship has also accelerated this independence.”
“This double liberation, from dictatorship and colonialism, is a very remarkable moment, and it has allowed us to reinvent the relationship with these countries, with these people, in freedom and democracy,” he continued.
António Costa welcomed the fact that today there is “a brotherly relationship, of strong cooperation” between Portugal and these countries.
“And that is why it is with great pleasure that I am here, the President of the Republic, who will arrive soon, to celebrate together this liberation,” he declared.
The Prime Minister submitted his resignation on November 7 as a result of a judicial investigation into the installation of a data center in Sines and the lithium and hydrogen sectors, prompting the Public Prosecution Service to open an independent investigation at the Supreme Court. it is focused.
Faced with this decision, which he accepted, the President of the Republic announced that he would dissolve Parliament and schedule early parliamentary elections for March 10.
However, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa decided to postpone the formal resignation of the government, which is carried out by decree, to allow the final approval of the 2023 state budget, scheduled for November 29, and its entry into force. Only at that point will the executive branch limit itself to management actions.
Source: DN
