The PS parliamentary leader this Saturday classified as “deeply anti-democratic” the demonstration announced by Chega as a siege of the socialists’ national headquarters in Lisbon, defending that this is “a matter for all democrats”.
Eurico Brilhante Dias reacted through a publication on Facebook to the announcement of Chega’s president and deputy André Ventura that the party intends to “capture the headquarters of the PS to show the outrage over the way they have run the country” , during a demonstration scheduled for this afternoon, at Largo do Rato.
“It is profoundly anti-democratic and clearly shows how the far right never has a constructive agenda and has no boundaries to question the Republic’s institutions. Hate speech, misogyny, racism and xenophobia quickly devolve into the lack of education and confrontation” , he criticized.
The socialist parliamentary leader emphasized that in one of the videos released on Chega’s social networks, André Ventura called for participation in this siege, “was filmed in the Great Hall of the Assembly of the Republic”.
“After a little over a year, we’ve had everything from threats to physical confrontations to insults. We can pretend it has nothing to do with us. Say that democracy and its weaknesses (and tolerance) are always to blame. Or even that some tactically take advantage of the circumstance. They are wrong. This is really a matter for all Democrats,” defended Brilhante Dias.
As early as Friday, former socialist leader Francisco Assis had expressed his rejection of the demonstration organized by Chega in front of the PS headquarters in Lisbon, accusing the party of institutional vandalism and the use of Mussolinian language.
In a note to the Lusa bureau, Assis said Chega’s demonstration should “earn a vehement and explicit rejection from all Portuguese democrats” and warned that democratic-constitutional values could be violated.
On Thursday, Chega president and deputy André Ventura told media the aim would be “to besiege the PS headquarters to show outrage at the way they have run the country” and said he had met with police and Lisbon. City Council, hoping for “an orderly and peaceful demonstration”.
On the social networks of the party, the initiative has been announced as a “siege off the coast of Rato, against corruption and impunity of the PS”, with photos of former rulers José Sócrates and Armando Vara or former banker Ricardo Salgado and sentences such as “in Corruption in Portugal has a stamp” or “no to abuse of power”.
Source: DN
