Former Secretary of State Miguel Cruz said on Tuesday that the Treasury Department was unaware Alexandra Reis’s departure from TAP involved compensation because the information available was a resignation, which would not imply that payment.
“Nobody ever thought there was any room for compensation, […] I only heard about the compensation later. […] All the information we had was perfectly consistent, ‘this is an exemption’, so there was no room for compensation,” the former finance minister told the TAP committee of inquiry.
The former ruler also stressed that the “Ministry of Finance was not aware of the reasons for Alexandra Reis’s departure”, only that it was a resignation, and it was later revealed that it was a termination in mutual consultation. figure that does not exist in the public manager statute, under which the airline falls since it returned to state control in 2020.
“Of course I think the Treasury should have known, but the fact is that the Treasury was not informed,” he added.
Miguel Cruz stated that he did not learn about the 500,000 euros paid to the former administrator until December 24, 2022, the day it was reported by Correio da Manhã.
Already questioned about the 55 million euros paid to then shareholder David Neeleman to leave the airline in 2020, the former ruler explained that it was the amount agreed by the lawyers, which included the payment of 22.5% of the shares , economic rights, 55 million euros in additional payments and David Neeleman’s commitment to waive lawsuits related to the state’s majority stake in the company.
This issue caused some confusion among the deputies, who insisted that Miguel Cruz explain himself better, with the ex-governor added that “the 55 million euros was not used to buy 55 million euros in additional benefits”, which is a “coincidence” in the values.
According to the shareholders’ agreement, in case of nationalization of the airline, the private shareholder was entitled to the nominal value of the collateral benefits (€224 million), plus the value of the shares (subject to independent assessment) plus 20%.
The former ruler explained that if nothing was done, the private shareholder’s view would lead to the company’s insolvency and that from the moment the government decided not to drop TAP, there were two options: one make a deal, or proceed to nationalization, which would entail litigation.
“There was no time or conditions for any kind of litigation,” Miguel Cruz stressed, noting the difficulties the airline was experiencing due to the pandemic.
For example, in the negotiations that were conducted between the State and David Neeleman, which culminated in 55 million euros, according to the former governor, a minimum amount intended by the government was taken into account between the minimum amount to be paid to the former shareholder and the amount of EUR 224 million related to a context of nationalization of the airline.
Asked about a potential conflict of interest in moving from President of Parpública (manager of state-owned companies) to Secretary of State for Finance, Miguel Cruz rejected that idea.
“It is Parpública’s responsibility to promote the public interest in its role as the ‘holding’ of the state’s corporate sector,” the ex-governor noted.
Source: DN
