The PSD parliamentary leader on Thursday challenged the President of the Assembly of the Republic to assess his ability to continue in this position, accusing Santos Silva of trying to achieve justice.
Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, in statements to journalists in Parliament, responded to the interview of the President of the Assembly of the Republic with RTP3, in which Augusto Santos Silva considered that the Supreme Court (STJ) should quickly clarify the criminal situation before the elections from the Prime Minister, emphasizing that the case sparked a political crisis.
“You should consider whether, in the four months until the elections, you can guarantee the independence and credibility that the position of President of the General Assembly imposes,” said the PSD parliamentary leader.
When asked whether Santos Silva should resign if he cannot meet these conditions, Miranda Sarmento replied: “If you have a strong, strong desire to help the PS, then you will not meet the conditions for independence to hold the position”he claimed.
“The President of the Assembly cannot, I repeat, cannot impose conditions or at least make declarations that could determine justice measures”he said, adding however that he was confident Santos Silva will “recognize the mistake” he made in Wednesday night’s interview.
Joaquim Miranda Sarmento believed that at this stage “The country needs institutions to maintain their credibility and the trust they inspire among citizens”adding that it is everyone’s responsibility to maintain them, “especially those who manage them”.
“The Prime Minister’s statement on Saturday was clearly unfortunate because of the way he tried to condition justice and the way he used the Prime Minister’s position for that purpose, but the interview that the Speaker of the Assembly gave yesterday was also not decidedly cheerful.”he said.
The PSD parliamentary leader emphasized that Santos Silva “represents the parliament, its diversity of opinions, and must try to preserve the institution and respect that it evokes among all Portuguese”.
“Citizen Augusto Santos Silva has every right to participate in the electoral process and have opinions, the President of the General Assembly should not”he said, arguing that Santos Silva “cannot wear both hats at the same time.”
When asked whether he was advocating special speed for the process to which the Prime Minister is subjected, the PSD parliamentary leader replied that “all citizens should be equal before the law and receive the same treatment.”
“We ask that justice be equal for all and that all cases be dealt with as quickly as possible.”appealed.
IL accuses Santos Silva of interfering with justice and being a ‘cheerleader’ of the PS
The leader of the Liberal Initiative, Rui Rocha, on Thursday accused the president of the Assembly of the Republic of interfering with justice and being “a kind of cheerleader on behalf of the PS or a faction of the PS”.
Rui Rocha responded in parliament to the interview that Augusto Santos Silva gave to RTP3 on Wednesday evening, in which he believed that the Supreme Court (STJ) should quickly clarify Prime Minister António’s criminal situation before the elections. Costa emphasized that the case caused a political crisis.
“This attempt to set a deadline for the investigation is clearly an interference. We don’t know what we are talking about, I hope Augusto Santos Silva knows as much as I do about this issue, and if we don’t know how to do it then we say what is at stake. Is it something simple that can be accelerated and completed in three or four months, or is it something more complex, more in-depth that requires a longer investigation?’the IL leader asked.
For Rui Rocha, “Setting a deadline for justice is neither dignified nor acceptable coming from the second figure of the state”.
The IL president acknowledged that there are problems in the field of justice, but classified the PS as “mainly responsible”.
“We must make a distinction: problems in the rule of law are addressed seriously, at the right time, not by forcing an investigation, because that is not the right role of those who separate powers, of those who have independence, it is the proper role of those who are members of a fan base. and that is not acceptable in a President of the Assembly of the Republic.”criticized.
In the same interview, Augusto Santos Silva publicly expressed his support for PS leadership candidate José Luís Carneiro.
Rui Rocha believed that the parliament speaker “always wore the PS shirt” during his mandate and that “now that it seems that it is no longer sufficient for him to wear the PS shirt, he is still part of a PS faction ” and that this is “not typical of a speaker of parliament”.
The leader of the Liberals complained that there is no formal official mechanism that allows the behavior of the President of the Assembly of the Republic to be discussed in parliament, as he is the state figure “least subject to any form of investigation or censorship’. .
Rui Rocha also accused Santos Silva of wanting to “catapult himself for personal purposes” and present himself as “one of the owners of the regime”.
“But there is no formal mechanism that allows this to be discussed, for example, in parliament with the President of the Assembly himself. The conclusion is that he must have this standard of dignity in his functions. And if he wants to remain a leader, sort of as a cheerleader on behalf of the PS or on behalf of a faction of the PS, then you would actually have to take an exam because cheerleading is done in other types of contexts, not in the role of President of the Assembly of the Republic .”he defended.
In the interview with RTP3, Augusto Santos Silva opined that this “is a very serious matter and it is very important that it is clarified as soon as possible”.
“I believe we have the right to ask the STJ to conduct the investigation quickly,” stated Augusto Santos Silva, after being asked about the legal process that led to António Costa’s resignation from his post as Prime Minister.
Portugal will hold early parliamentary elections on March 10, 2024, scheduled by the President of the Republic, following the resignation of the Prime Minister.
António Costa is the target of an investigation by the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) at the Supreme Court, after suspects in a trial investigating the abuse of influence in the affairs of a data center in Sines invoked his name for intervening to proceedings, but has already refused to commit “any unlawful or offensive act”.
On November 10, the MP arrested five people: the prime minister’s chief of staff, Vítor Escária, the mayor of Sines, Nuno Mascarenhas, two directors of the Start Campus association, Afonso Salema and Rui Oliveira Neves, and the lawyer Diogo Lacerda Machado. friend of António Costa, who was released at the end of the judicial interrogation.
A total of nine defendants are in the investigation into the lithium, green hydrogen and Sines data center activities, including the former Minister of Infrastructure, João Galamba, the president of the Portuguese Environment Agency, Nuno Lacasta, the lawyer and former PS spokesperson João Tiago Silveira and the company Start Campus.
Source: DN
