After all, who’s lying? The now former deputy of Minister João Galamba who accuses him of wanting to withhold information about TAP from the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI)? Or Minister João Galamba who, in a statement this Friday, “categorically denied any allegation that he attempted in any way to condition or omit information to TAP’s CPI”?
The panorama – within the government – in the face of the CPI is increasingly confusing and the process already includes allegations against the aforementioned former deputy of Galamba, Frederico Pinheiro, of having physically assaulted four of the minister’s associates (two press assistants, the chief of staff and a deputy) and even tried to steal a laptop from work (from the state). Such allegations have already been the subject of a complaint from the minister to the PJ.
The case concerns the famous “secret” meeting which on January 17 brought together in a video conference TAP CEO Christine Ourmières-Widener, the assistant minister Frederico Pinheiro and a PS deputy to the CPI, Carlos Pereira. The meeting preceded Christine Ourmières-Widener’s participation the following day in a parliamentary committee to discuss the dismissal of Alexandra Reis from the company’s management. At the TAP CPI, Christine Ourmières-Widener would later reveal the existence of that meeting, but make sure it was not intended to condition her testimony. “It was more of a briefing than a strategy meeting (…). I don’t remember a combination of questions,” said the now former CEO of TAP. The leader of the meeting was Frederico Pinheiro.
Last Wednesday, the Minister of Infrastructure, João Galamba, fired him. It concerns the notes that Frederico Pinheiro made of the so-called “secret meeting” and another, the day before (January 16), involving Galamba himself and the CEO of TAP, among others. Galamba fired the deputy, arguing that he “repeatedly” denied making those notes, “which could have led to a wrong answer to the CPI by the Infrastructure Minister’s office”.
However, Frederico Pinheiro denied it this Friday. In a statement to which DN has access, the former deputy says that he revealed the existence of these notes to the minister on April 5. And more saying: in these notes it was “clear” that in that January 17 meeting “questions to be asked by the PS faction had been articulated and the answers and communication strategy of the CEO of TAP had been mentioned”. In other words, the “secret” meeting was much more than a simple briefing; it was a meeting to train TAP’s (then) CEO for what she should say in Parliament the next day.
But Frederico Pinheiro goes further in this statement. He claims that it was not Galamba’s initial intention to send the said notes to the CPI. Only he had to review it because Frederico Pinheiro himself had told him that if he were called to the CPI, “he would be obliged to contradict the information”. That is to say: he made it “clear” that “the decision they made not to disclose the existence of the notes should be reviewed”. Last Wednesday, João Galamba arrived in Lisbon from Singapore and as soon as he landed, he called Frederico Pinheiro to fire him. At the end of the day, the police case began.
Frederico Pinheiro went to his ministry’s office to get his laptop, but four Galamba employees refused to let him take it. A very tense situation ensued, reportedly involving aggression, and Pinheiro attempted to leave the ministry with his laptop, smashing a window by throwing his electric bicycle at him. He left after calling the PSP.
According to Expresso and SIC, the Minister’s Chief of Staff will have requested help from the Security Information Service (SIS) at the end of Wednesday afternoon, which went to the home of Frederico Pinheiro at the beginning of the night to rescue the computer and take it with it. to take. forward it to CEGER (ICT Network Management Center Government).
Later, according to Expresso and DN confirmed, Galamba reported the situation to the PJ and these police opened a criminal investigation – various crimes could be involved, from theft, violation of official duty or violation of state secret.
Meanwhile, this Friday afternoon, the PJ collected the computer from CEGER to subject it to an expertise that can detect whether secret or copied documents have been extracted,
Now the opposition wants to hear the ex-deputy to the CPI – yet another mine explodes at the feet of the government. António Costa remained strictly silent.
Source: DN
