“I don’t believe this question should be directed particularly to the PSD: Chega is represented in the national parliament, in regional parliaments, and now in several municipalities, they must assume their responsibilities,” stated Luís Montenegro, reacting at the PSD/Porto headquarters to the election results that favored the Social Democrats.
Montenegro acknowledged that, in many municipalities, there is “a situation of balance,” and that the PSD won in some cases by a narrow margin, but assured that they lost “many more” by the same margin.
“Regarding the governance of the municipalities, our principle is to respect the autonomy of local power in all its expression. The elected officials must assume their responsibility: those who won and do not have absolute majorities must engage in dialogue, those who did not win must serve the communities,” he stated.
Montenegro assured that the national leadership will not “interfere directly in the management of these municipalities, these parish councils.”
“It is a task for them, within the principles of their candidacies and the democratic relationship between political forces,” he said, inviting the media to analyze what happened over the last four years.
According to the PSD leader, Chega had in the last local elections “councilors elected who ended up being determinant in managing some municipal councils,” almost always with the PS “or even with parties further to the left.”
“It seems that only the PSD has to answer this question, but there are PS municipalities and even PCP municipalities that had a political relationship with the elected officials, those who won at the polls the right to represent the community,” he stated.
Montenegro argued, therefore, that “it is pointless to cast a stigma on the PSD which should be exactly the same as that cast on all other parties.”
“As for extending a hand, we will not extend a hand to anyone, we will extend a hand to the people, to the Portuguese, in each municipality, in each parish, finding the conditions for governance within the political system we have. And I believe others will do the same,” he said.
Montenegro was also asked when he will submit documentation related to the preventive investigation of his family’s company to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, but he said he would not comment on this topic today.
[News updated at 01:34]
