“Level of disaggregation in the Government harmful to Portugal”, says Cotrim de Figueiredo
The still leader of the Liberal Initiative highlighted that the current government instability supports the party, which already this year presented a motion of censure to the Government.
Upon arrival at the main meeting, in Lisbon, João Cotrim de Figueiredo criticizes the Socialist Executive and recalls controversies. “Right now, the ministers who are most fragile are Defense and Finance. Therefore, it is a level of disaggregation in the Government that it is difficult for me to understand how people do not put two and two together and say: ‘This Government as it is, with the wrong policies that are applied and, in this state of disintegration, each day that passes is a day that harms Portugal’.”
The outgoing president of IL criticized the “certain levity” with which Pedro Nuno Santos proved that he knew about TAP’s compensation to Alexandra Reis.
“When we presented the censure motion on January 5, people thought I was exaggerating when I said that it was not just a matter of political divergence because what the PS was doing was already a question of the democratic health of a Government that was in disaggregation. Fifteen days later, maybe people will understand better what is happening”, he told journalists.
For the IL leader, “it is not the case of Pedro Nuno Santos, who has already left the Government, and now, with a certain levity, he says that he has been looking at messages and that now he remembers a small detail of half a million euros of compensation that was approved by the Ministry of Infrastructure”.
The outgoing leader of the IL also considers that liberals need “a new impetus” and a “wider and more combative strategy”guaranteeing that “as of Monday there will be only one party”.
“We have always shown that we are capable of uniting around what matters. I’m sure we’ll be able to unite. From Monday there is only one party under the leadership of a new person, ”she assured.
The VII Convention of the Liberal Initiative takes place between today and Sunday, at the Lisbon Congress Centre, and the approximately 2,300 party members registered for the main meeting will elect João Cotrim Figueiredo’s successor as leader of the party, which in the last legislative elections went from one for eight deputies.
In the first elective in the history of IL (founded in 2017), Rui Rocha and Carla Castro, both deputies and members of the outgoing board, and national councilor José Cardoso are running for the presidency of the Executive Committee.