The prime minister said this Monday that World Youth Day (WYD) is an opportunity to pay off a 30-year debt owed to Loures, giving it a riverside front, in a speech praising former minister Pedro Nuno Santos.
This message was conveyed by António Costa in his speech at the end of a visit he made to the grounds of the WYD, whose ceremonies will take place between August 1 and 6, largely on the banks of the Tagus, in countries in the municipalities of Lisbon and Loures.
In a speech of approximately 20 minutes, recalling the many challenges Expo 98 faced 25 years ago, the executive leader defended that WYD will not only leave an immense tangible and intangible legacy, but also “the great opportunity to pay the great debt that the city of Lisbon, that the metropolitan area, that the land owes to the municipality of Loures”.
A debt, according to António Costa, in the sense of “now allowing the municipality of Loures to also have a real riverfront that it can enjoy, use and effectively improve all that territory” in the Bobadela area .
António Costa even stressed that before the journey began, “the document of the transfer of state to the municipality of Loures of this entire part of the territory” must be signed. and claimed that “after 30 years of waiting, it is better that everything be put in writing, duly stamped in a notary, so that no one ever has any idea not to do what was decided to do 30 years ago”.
In his speech, when speaking of the restoration of the riverbank area destined for WYD, the Prime Minister also referred to those who “always live the day-to-day fear”, recommending that “it is always good to spend some time spend to explain that there is nothing like having the peace of mind that makes longevity possible”.
“If someone really has an idea in their head and has real perseverance, they can hold it for 30 years until they see it come true, but as long as they don’t give up, it will really come true. 30 years later, having been able to realize an idea. And that’s why it is a moment of immense gratitude for me to be able to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the opening of Expo98 with this testimony to the realization of an idea that has been in my head for three decades”he said.
In his speech, the leader of the executive branch praised his former minister Pedro Nuno Santos, as well as the former president of Infrastructure in Portugal, engineer António Laranjo.
According to António Costa, the two showed “great determination to implement the decision to proceed with the removal of the container terminal” in Bobadela.
“We cannot do without a container park, now we can have a container park where it needs to be. . It has even started on some of the plots to be seeded, it is already becoming good infrastructure for the future, the footbridge is being built”orphan.
For the prime minister, however, “there will be more than the bridge, which only allows passage”. “many hectares where people can enjoy picnics, ball games, running, dating, contemplating the Tagus, seeing the beauty of the marshes, seeing the birds, enjoying”.
“And the municipality of Loures will finally have its riverside platform appraised and treated properly”he added.
Before the intervention of the Prime Minister, the Mayor of Loures, Ricardo Leão, the coordinator of the World Youth Day Project Group, José Sá Fernandes, and the President of the WYD Lisbon 2023 Foundation, the Bishop Americo Aguiar.
Ricardo Leão thanked the government and the church for choosing the space and, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the inauguration of Expo-98, recalled the importance of the event in the Parque das Nações area. WJD can come to your commune from Loures.
José Sá Fernandes emphasized the fact that this is a terrain “where there was no light, no water” and that now allows walks in a “gigantic area”.
Bishop Américo Aguiar characterized the decision to choose this space for WYD as a “bold political decision” that made him happy.
Source: DN
