It has been a month since someone resigned from the government, but the Bloco de Esquerda seems to want to keep on the parliamentary agenda successive internal affairs that have hampered the government, as well as the scandal in Espinho that led to the resignation (and pre-emptive custody) of the mayor, the socialist Miguel Reis.
After proposing a parliamentary commission of inquiry to TAP (voted for the PS) essentially targeting its “political tutelage” from 2020 to the present (ie: targeting former ministers João Leão and Pedro Nuno Santos and even the current head of finance, Fernando Medina), the blockers now present bills with a “portrait”, bills announced during the party’s parliamentary days that took place on Monday and Tuesday in Aveiro and Viseu.
“What we propose is that when public office holders leave their position and do not return to their original profession, i.e. when they have a different professional career, they are obliged to inform the Transparency Entity and it will say whether the new function with the office.”
For example, we have what might be called the “Rita Marques Project” – the name of the Secretary of State for Tourism who left the government at the end of November last year and accepted a few weeks later to become the administrator of a company for which she, while ruler, , had signed tax benefits. Although Rita Marques later eventually announced that she would not go to the company, BE wants to keep the matter alive.
Catarina Martins explained the proposal that the party will present: “What we are proposing is that public office holders, when they leave their positions and do not return to their original profession, that is, they have a different professional career, are obliged to report to the Transparency Service Entity and it says whether or not the new position is compatible with the performance of the position.” Without naming the former secretary of state, the BE leader defended that “there is no restriction for people to return to their profession”, but it cannot be normal for “a government official to make decisions about a company and then be adopted by the company itself company”.
“Nobody notices […] that the family members [de governantes] cannot contract with the government for their companies […] but who can apply for European funds.”
The other proposal may be called “Ana Abrunhosa”, the name of the minister responsible for EU funds with the Cohesion portfolio (and her husband, a businessman, has already benefited from these funds).
Catarina Martins, again: “No one understands, let alone that European funds are the biggest investment the country will have, that family members cannot contract for their companies with the government – it is normal that they cannot, it is a matter of transparency – but that they can apply for European funds. This has already happened, it should not happen, we want to correct it, we want to strengthen the republican ethic that is necessary for the credibility of democracy.”
Finally, the “Miguel Reis Project” (a socialist who, struggling with charges of corruption and other crimes, resigned as mayor of Espinho and is now in preventive detention).
The case arose from an anonymous complaint from within the council. Here BE intends to change the general whistleblower protection scheme. “There is protection for whistleblowers who cannot be dismissed within a two-year period. Now the terms of office in municipalities are four years, so we must extend the protection of these employees to at least the duration of the term of office,” explains the BE- leader out.
This Tuesday, Catarina Martins joined a meeting of teachers in Viseu (more news on page 10), where she accused the government of “irresponsibility” and “radicalism” for “not giving an inch”.
Source: DN
