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The Minister of Finance assumed on Tuesday, in an interview with TSF, that there was indeed “a communication failure” with António Costa, but that the loan operation to Novo Banco (through the Resolution Fund) was always contractually foreseen and it did not depend on any audit, although António Costa said something very different. Former coalition and opposition partners are not convinced: Mário Centeno has a lot to explain.
That is exactly what Catarina Martins suggested, the first to react to the interview with the Minister of Finance. For the coordinator of the Bloco de Esquerda, Mário Centeno does not see the seriousness of the problem.
“The Minister of Finance is wrong when he thinks that the problem is a communication failure. It cannot be said that it is a communication failure; it is much more serious than that ”, emphasized Catarina Martins.
The blocker also recalled that the prime minister made the “political commitment” several times that there would be no new injections of money until the audit of the bank’s accounts was completed. Fact that Centeno again denied in TSF: “Portugal cannot put a bank at risk. It would be a great irresponsibility. I have not changed my mind: we cannot breach the contract, like Novo Banco,” he said.
PCP: “You are hiding very serious problems”
Questioned by Expresso, the PCP parliamentary leader, João Oliveira, finds it strange that “there is so much control for every penny of support for SMEs” at the same time that there is a “communication failure or lack of coordination”, in this case. “Neither from the point of view of communication seems to be a concern” at the height of the Novo Banco problem, he laments.
However, the PCP wishes to emphasize that focusing on this “communication failure” mentioned by Mário Centeno cannot “hide two much more serious problems”. They are the fact that the injection even exists: the party presented in the State Budget a proposal so that any transfer means the return to public control of the bank, and of not meeting “the conditions that the Government itself, through the voice of the Prime Minister, minister, had identified, “that is, the need for a prior audit.
CDS: “Centeno tried to explain the inexplicable”
Cecília Meireles, from CDS, signs below. Speaking to Expresso, the Christian Democrat suggests that the Minister of Finance “tried to explain the inexplicable” and again contradicted António Costa: if current and future capital injections do not depend on audits, then the Minister of Finance has to explain this to the prime minister who promises otherwise, argues the deputy.
The Christian Democrat, moreover, argues that “the contract” with Lone Star “was poorly designed from the beginning” and that it was evident that the bank “was going to present the account.” “The Prime Minister knew this perfectly well. He should think better before giving those answers. [sobre a auditoria]”he says.
Regarding the fundamental question, if the State should lend more money to Novo Banco, Cecília Meireles prefers to be cautious, but she argues that the rules should be the same for everyone.
“The bankruptcy of the financial system would not be good for anyone. But neither would the collapse of the economy. If the contracts and the legislation are complied with, the credit lines will also work. Delay after delay, the government is not complying.” with the legislation it approved to support companies, “he denounces.
PAN: “Mário Centeno won the alibi he was looking for to leave the Ministry”
The PAN considers that the case of transferring the 850 million euros to Novo Banco without the Prime Minister constitutes an “artificial crisis” that the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister are “interested in feeding” in the current context.
“Mário Centeno won the alibi that he had been looking for months to leave the Ministry of Finance and assume the position of Governor of the Banco de Portugal, something that the whole country knew he had been waiting for months. António Costa, when he managed to put the spotlight of public opinion In this secondary issue, it hides the serious impact that this irresponsible operation will have on the financial sustainability of our country, which due to the new coronavirus and its economic and social impacts is already so compromised “, accuses André Silva, deputy and spokesman of the PAN.
For the PAN, the most serious aspect of this entire operation is that the Government, even in the context of a pandemic crisis, continues to open the holes in the new bank and the interests of the bank ahead of the improvement of living conditions. of the citizen.
The party stresses that, in this regard and with a view to strengthening the independence of the Banco de Portugal and avoiding “promiscuity” between the Banco de Portugal and the political power, commercial banks and financial advisers, the PAN presented a bill that prevents the positions in the management of the BoP are in the hands of members of sovereign organisms and a disgusting period of five years is foreseen for those who have occupied positions in commercial banking, in the Government and in consultants who work with the regulator.
For the Chega deputy, the alleged lack of communication between the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister about the transfer to Novo Banco “limits with gross negligence”, and may even involve “criminal problems”. “If no further information is provided on this matter, I admit that I am proposing a commission of inquiry to investigate the case,” says André Ventura.
