The president of the republic clarified this Monday that he believes that the report of the Inspectorate General of Finance (IGF) on the compensation paid by TAP to Alexandra Reis could lead to “legal, not political, consequences”.
Speaking to journalists at the end of a ceremony at the Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa stressed that “there is still no final report”.
“If there is, the finance minister has already said he would comment on it and then draw conclusions or not, imagine the conclusions are that everything is legal”said the head of state.
Even “if not everything is legal”, he added, there could be “various irregularities”, saying that “the minister will act according to the law”.
When asked if on Saturday when he referred to the fallout from this case, he was referring to the government or TAP, the president of the republic replied: “No, I mean legal ramifications, not political ones.”
“What is at stake, according to the report’s conclusions, is whether or not there are irregularities. You have to see which and which response is justified.”he said.
And when asked if he had not “left the door wide open for the finance minister” to leave the government on Saturday, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa replied with another question.
“How? I said it and I repeat it again: after deciding to open the investigation, the Finance Minister waits for the report and decides on the report”he claimed.
On Saturday, the president of the republic defended that the finance minister, Fernando Medina, should consider the consequences of the IGF’s conclusions for the compensation paid to former secretary of state Alexandra Reis.
“If the Minister of Finance has requested it, the Minister of Finance will have to carefully weigh up the consequences of the report. We will wait and see.”he then answered the question of journalists whether this case could have further political consequences.
SIC Notícias brought up on Friday evening that the draft opinion of the Inspectorate General of Finance (IGF) revealed irregularities in the process by which TAP paid compensation of 500 thousand euros to the former administrator and former secretary of state for finance, Alexandra Reis.
The Ministry of Finance explained on Sunday that the IGF’s inspection action on compensation paid to former TAP administrator Alexandra Reis is still “in the adversarial phase” and a final report will not be prepared until later.
“The IGF’s inspection action is still ongoing and is in the contradictory phase. Only after this phase will a final report be prepared and sent to the government”clarified the ministry of Fernando Medina in a statement.
According to custody, “Once the inspection is complete and the report is prepared, the Treasury Secretary will promptly make the findings public and determine what should be imposed to ensure full legality.”
Source: DN
