The president of the Portuguese Olympic Committee denounced this Wednesday the prime minister’s lack of interest in national Olympism, revealed that he had not met António Costa for nine years and extended criticism of the vice minister and Parliamentary Affairs.
“I have asked my collaborators here, but this is not easy to obtain, an assessment of which European country the prime minister, for nine years, has not met with the president of the respective Olympic Committee to assess the national sports situation. Because I follow the websites of many European Olympic committees, and I see the photographs. The Prime Minister of Portugal does not feel that need”, lamented José Manuel Constantino.
The president of the COP maintains that throughout his government, António Costa delegated functions to the ministers responsible for Sport – Tiago Brandão Rodrigues, first, and Ana Catarina Mendes in the current legislature – and to the State Secretaries responsible for the sector, to namely João Paulo Rebelo and Joao Paulo Correia.
“He has never been present at one of our initiatives, but he is present at the initiatives of the Paralympic Committee. It is a political option. Of course, it is a signal that is being given, that some are more important than others. I think that he does not do it because he does not appreciate the president of the Olympic Committee very much, or because he thinks that our work is not a work that serves the country, [mas] because, from the point of view of the hierarchy and the importance of their political options, this is not a priority. Since it is not a priority… ”, he defended.
José Manuel Constantino criticized that António Costa resorted to “a private social network” to congratulate athletes and federations when the Portuguese missions win medals.
“The Olympic Committee, zero. And this is how we live together, because, in fact, there are no obvious signs that this can change. And therefore, I will end my days with the regret of not having been able to change this state. of affairs. things. But, even though I’m sick and tired, I don’t give up. And as long as I can fight, I will fight,” he said, visibly moved.
The Olympic leader explained that in the almost 10 years he has been in office he has never received “any praise or word of thanks from the Prime Minister regarding the achievements of Portuguese athletes in the Olympic events.”
“In janeiro river [em 2016]I was in charge of the mission, and the message from the Prime Minister was for the Vice President [Rosa Mota]. He has the habit of communicating and celebrating sporting achievements through a private social network, which is not exactly, unless I believe in my opinion, the school where I was trained, from the point of view of institutional relations. But in the end, times are what they are. I register, but I have to live with this situation, ”he reiterated.
José Manuel Constantino extended the criticism to Ana Catarina Mendes, Deputy Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, who oversees Sports.
“It is a surprise, because he is, personally, a very kind, very affable person, but who, to date, has not added any factor of novelty to what public sports policies are. He is closely linked to equality issues, inclusion issues, gender parity issues, which are somewhat part of the neoliberal agenda of many European political parties, but they are cross-cutting issues in social policies, ”he warned.
The president of the COP acknowledged that his expectations about Ana Catarina Mendes “were higher than what has been […] the action of the minister.
“So as for the Olympic Committee, she is also a completely distant person. We, on several occasions, had the opportunity to invite the minister to our events. She never accepted, so much so that I even gave internal guidelines so that, from this moment on, invitations are no longer sent, because, naturally, I believe that there is a principle of respectability here for the Portuguese Olympic Committee, which was not safeguarded ” , he stressed.
Constantino said that he hopes that “the future will correct these situations” with Ana Catarina Mendes, so that the entity he presides over can have “a perfectly normalized relationship” with the minister, in the same way that it has with the Secretary of State, after an ‘attributed’ start.
“There was what is known. The Secretary of State decided to start his tour of sports organizations, choosing partners that, from our point of view, should not be the first, therefore it is a completely closed issue, ”he declared.
The leader left a word of appreciation to João Paulo Correia, praising the collaboration of the current Secretary of State for Sports with the COP.
“He is a person who cooperates with the Olympic Committee, shares with the Olympic Committee what he thinks he should share with the Olympic Committee, and seeks to build decisions regarding the Olympic Committee, reaching a consensus with the Olympic Committee. And therefore My assessment, from the point of view of the relationship of the current Secretary of State with the Olympic Committee, is positive, ”he concluded.
Source: TSF
