Marcelo was approved at a party in Lisbon and even included Coins in a virtuous troika ″
The President of the Republic was obtained at a party in Bairro da Boavista, in the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the Lisbon district, and even included Carlos Moedas, who accompanied him on his nearly three-hour visit, in a “virtuous troika”.
Asked if he plans to make a “double” many times with the recently inaugurated mayor of Lisbon, elected in a coalition headed by the PSD, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa preferred to add a third element to the conversation: the president of the Parish Council of Benfica, the socialist Ricardo Marques, who acted as master of ceremonies in the visit to the neighborhood, born in 1941.
“I was invited, the president of the Chamber was invited. It was a very good meeting, the president of the junta joined us, it became a virtuous troika,” said the head of state, causing laughter among the delegation.
He added: “They are of different political orientations and I am above the parties. Well, strictly speaking, the mayor and the junta are also above the parties.”
The former secretary of state in the times of the real “troika” had already considered it “an honor” to accompany the head of state on his visits to the city of Lisbon, in statements to the newspapers even before the arrival of the President of the Republic, highlighting some concerns common.
“I share with the President of the Republic this challenge and this concrete objective of taking care of people, of being with people,” stated Carlos Moedas.
And there was no lack of people on this presidential trip, which recalled pre-pandemic times, in number of ‘selfies’, greetings and even a visit to a kitchen for the president to evaluate a soup that was being prepared for the party.
Marcelo took a wooden spoon from the cook, uncovered pots and even took out a mask to smell better.
“This is better, it’s stronger,” he said, preferring the rich bean soup to the so-called Barroso soup, the name by which the traditional soup of the poor was known.
The president began the visit by the Boavista Neighborhood Residents and Friends Recreational Association, went up to the oldest club in the neighborhood, Águias, where he shared a saucer of lupines and a ‘mini’ with some elements of the gypsy community, leaving a request.
“They have to turn to children and young people, for the new generations, they have to realize the role they can play in the future, they and they”, she said, noting that women today have a “majority and decisive role in Portuguese society and that no longer goes back “.
“Women have as many rights as men,” acknowledged one of the young men she was talking to.
At the club, he covered his stomach with a rind sandwich and went on to another of the neighborhood projects, a set of 50 houses that replaced traditional masonry houses, which are eco-sustainable and planned for people with reduced mobility and evolutionary. increase if a family grows.
With the architect and former Lisbon councilor Helena Roseta at his side – one of those responsible for the project -, Marcelo visited the home of one of the residents, Florinda Belchior, whom he insisted on photographing with a camera ‘stolen’ from the official photographer of the Presidency .
“This neighborhood of Boavista left Portuguese sportsmen all over the world, and it was renewed and will be renewed”, he stressed, highlighting a “unique integration” between the various communities and the “social concern before the time” lived here.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa promised to continue the “night out” at the party and not as masks hindered the distribution of kisses throughout the neighborhood, succeeding in visits to local clubs and associations, but the visit ended almost like a concert, with the President of the Republic and Carlos Moedas taking the stage where some local artists were performing since the afternoon.
“It is my first visit here as mayor, but you will have me here many times by your side. What makes me most proud is your pride in this neighborhood, in your roots,” said the mayor.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, on the other hand, began to ‘warm up’ the audience, launching the challenge: “What is the best neighborhood in Lisbon, which is the best neighborhood in Portugal, I want to hear it louder”.
“It’s been 80 years of human warmth, struggle, friendship, 80 years of roots and turning to the future, from the time of the lusalite and wooden houses, and then advancing step by step, step by step”, emphasize, highlighting the upcoming construction of a new school and a new park.
Despite the long visit, the head of state promised to return “soon for a sardine”, he called the children to the stage, saying goodbye with a “ié ié ié, Boavista is that it is”.
Bairro da Boavista, located in the parish of Benfica, was built in the 1940s to house families from precarious housing.