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Presidential candidate Ana Gomes believes that former head of state Cavaco Silva did well to claim a solid political foundation before taking office in November 2015, the first socialist government led by António Costa. He criticizes Marcelo in matters of foreign policy, specifically in the judicial cases of Angola and Mozambique, and criticizes the “backs” of the PR and the Prime Minister, which lead to a perception of “confusion” about the separation of powers.
In an interview with the Lusa agency, the former socialist MEP defends that the Government’s proposal for State Budgets for 2021 “goes in the right direction”, hopes that there will be no political crisis in the current situation of health, economic and social crisis, but understands that the current situation of The negotiating tension between the political forces of the left would not exist if there was a solid legislative agreement.
“I do not criticize Professor Cavaco Silva for having made this demand [de um acordo escrito em novembro de 2015]. I think it was positive in the sense that it helped create the stable grassroots parliamentary solution that we all call ‘gimmick’, ”argues the former Socialist MEP.
The current president of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, according to Ana Gomes, on the contrary, “It should have shown much more effort after the October 2019 legislative elections in the search for a solid government solution based on parliament.”. “A solution that would undoubtedly have prepared the country much better, not only to face this crisis due to the pandemic, but also to carry out the fundamental reforms that the country obviously needed,” defends the former PS leader.
Asked about how she sees the current situation of the negotiation in the State Budget between the Government and the parliamentary partners of her left, Ana Gomes says that she hopes that “the temptation to stir the specter of a political crisis has already been shelved.”
“I hope there will not be a political crisis, because the Portuguese do not want or need a political crisis at a time when they are already dealing with a tremendous crisis of health, economic, social and, ultimately, of collective security. I believe that the Budget is going in the right direction, because there has been the Government’s ability to negotiate from the left, also reflecting what is the clear indication that comes from the electorate in the last elections, “he defends.
Ana Gomes even praises “the negotiating effort that the Government has been making and that is reflected in the Budget, taking into account many of the suggestions of the left-wing parties.” “There is still a long way to go and some of the demands made by left-wing parties are pertinent, for example the prohibition of layoffs in companies that have state support, ‘dismissal’ and more,” he points out.
Asked what she expects from the meeting of the PS National Committee on the 31st, which will decide the position of this party in relation to the presidential elections, the former Socialist MEP assures that at present she is only a “mere grassroots activist”.
“I am not going to be there at that meeting and I do not want to interfere with the decision of the party’s own organs. A democratic party cannot be held hostage by one or a handful of men. It exists to reflect together. I trust that socialist activists are free and know how to think with their own head “, stresses.
Asked if she shares the criticism of the former PS spokesman and his supporter Paulo Pedroso that there is a cult of the cacique in the party led by António Costa, Ana Gomes only answers that this is the perception of Paulo Pedroso. “He knows the game better than I do, because he was the leader for a longer time and has many contacts with the party machine itself, which is not my case. It’s certainly an informed opinion, but it’s yours, not mine, ”he says.
In this chapter on the position of the Socialists vis-à-vis the various candidates in the race for Belém, the former Socialist MEP rather prefers to turn to the history of the presidential elections to argue that whenever her party has had a clear position in support of a candidate in the presidential elections ”. the PS made the difference, as happened with the elections of General Ramalho Eanes, Mário Soares and Jorge Sampaio ”.
“When the PS neither played nor divided, then the candidate of the right was elected. It is important that the Socialists take this into account when making their decision, ”he replied.
As for the socialists critical of his candidacy, such as the Minister of State and Foreign Relations, Augusto Santos Silva, who suggests that Ana Gomes does not have the profile to be supported by the PS, the diplomat opts for de-dramatization, contrasting that there is ” many socialists “to support him and encourage him to carry on.
“I think I have the necessary characteristics to be elected President of the Republic. Moderation, the role of referee of the President of the Republic, is certainly very important. And I even have these qualities demonstrated by my diplomatic training that never overlapped with other qualities that I also consider necessary, particularly at the top of the State, such as ensuring the regular functioning of democratic institutions ”, he emphasizes.
In this interview, Ana Gomes also says count the active presence of the current president of the Economic and Social Council, Francisco Assis, in his campaign, pointing out that this is a person who, on the PS’s own spectrum, will certainly be on your right. Regarding the rest of his supporters, the former socialist MEP affirms that he is open to all support from the democratic sphere, but “not to those who clearly have an undemocratic agenda”, such as the Chega party.
“This party represents the extreme fascist right, similar to the European formations to which it is associated and which have the worst and worst historical memory that Europeans should not lose,” he accuses.
Asked whether she has spoken with the former secretary general of the PS, António José Seguro, who supported the primary elections in this party against the current leader, Ana Gomes says that she has not seen him for many years, since he left the leadership of the PS in the end of September 2014. “But about two months ago I was with him in Penamacor. It was a pleasure to be with him again and at that point I had not yet decided whether or not to apply. I like talking to him. He is a serious person that I appreciate. I think he was a leader in a very complicated stage in the life of the PS, just after José Sócrates ”, he says.
Presidential candidate Ana Gomes considers that there are democratic institutions that do not work and that, due to the “backs” between the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister, there is now a perception of “confusion” about the separation of powers.
In an interview with the Lusa agency, the former PS deputy once again criticizes the process followed by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and António Costa in the replacement of the president of the Court of Accounts (TdC) and considers the non-automatic principle of non-renewal of mandates of the judicial charges.
Ana Gomes, however, does not align with the defenders of the current who demanded the renewal of Joana Marques Vidal as Attorney General. She even considers that the mandate of Joana Marques Vidal had positive and very negative points, such as the processing of the submarine process acquired by the Portuguese State, a decision that she says was “political”.
“There are democratic institutions that do not work as they should, for example in the courts, but not only. Regarding the separation of powers, I understand that confusion is created when there is too much contact between the President of the Republic and the Government. This is the perception that many citizens have in relation to some episodes, such as the recent replacement of the president of the Court of Accounts, ”says Ana Gomes.
In this episode, the former Socialist MEP even accuses the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, of having said in one day “that he did not know anything, but two days later a new President of the Court of Accounts was already taking office, assuming it the pain and responsibility of this replacement itself, in fact, in contradiction with what the Portuguese knew in relation to the Government’s own initiative ”.
“I do not accept that the automatic non-renewal or the automatic renewal can be erected at discretion, when they have no constitutional basis. Nothing rules out the assessment of the performance of those who held these bodies, specifically the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) and the TdC ”, he defends, here in a new criticism of the explanation presented by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and António Costa to justify the no reelection of the Judge Counselor Vítor Caldeira as president of the TdC and, rather, that of Joana Marques Vidal.
As for the Court of Accounts, Ana Gomes assures that she would like, before listening to the President of the Republic, to speak “of a situation that belongs to him, forcing the institutions to function as they should and fully exercise their powers.”
“The sanctioning power that the Court of Auditors has, which could be of enormous importance in the sense of combating economic and financial immorality, is little used. Did anyone ever mention that? Isn’t this a symptom of the irregular functioning of democratic institutions? “, Question.
The presidential candidate Ana Gomes harshly criticizes the President of the Republic for his actions in foreign policy, noting that there were “several moments” that displeased him, such as the court cases of former Angolan vice president Manuel Vicente, as well as the disappearance of The businessman Portuguese Américo Sebastião in Mozambique.
“There were several moments that I disliked [na atuação do chefe de Estado], for example when the President of the Republic, in concert with the Government, mobilized to produce a judicial decision that allowed the Portuguese justice to abandon the trial of engineer Manuel Vicente, when he was accused of having corrupted a Portuguese prosecutor ”, He says. .
Ana Gomes also says that she did not like that the case of businessman Américo Sebastião “was put under the rug”, despite acknowledging that “there was an intense and attentive monitoring” of the situation by the Presidency of the Republic.
“In view of the latest events, which involved threats to the family of this businessman”, together with a “persistent refusal by the Mozambican authorities at the highest level to accept the help of the Judicial Police to clarify what happened”, it is not acceptable – it says – that “The Mozambican authorities responsible for the refusal to accept Portuguese help to locate our businessman have always been fully supported”.
Presidential candidate Ana Gomes also says that the government “unnecessarily exposed itself to criticism” in the election of the European prosecutor, and affirms that issues related to the rule of law should already be resolved in the European Union.
“This controversy is not good,” he warns. The Portuguese Government has ratified the election of the Superior Council of the Public Ministry of Prosecutor José Guerra, to the detriment of Ana Paula Almeida, who ranked first in the choice of the Selection Commission of the European Prosecutor’s Office.
“From my point of view, no matter how much knowledge the Superior Council of the Public Ministry has, it is not correct to annul the selection made by an independent body such as the Selection Committee,” he defends, stating, however, that the process “No it was against the rules. “
Ana Gomes points out, however, that her opinion does not imply any value judgment on “people in particular”. “But I fully understand that whoever overlooked is reacting. If an international competition by decision of a national body were to ignore me, I would also react ”, he says.
