At the conclusion of his presidential candidacy presentation, António Filipe addressed journalists’ questions, contemplating whether he intends to be the antithesis of Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa if elected as the next President of the Republic.
“I wouldn’t say antithesis, but certainly very different. I would likely speak much less about unimportant issues and focus more on genuinely important matters, rather than adopting a somewhat tactical stance regarding the national political situation,” the candidate responded.
António Filipe expressed that he would adopt “a position of candor and directness,” ensuring that the Portuguese people “would not face a President entangled in political tactics, but someone seriously committed to their mandate and genuinely concerned with serving the Portuguese people and democracy.”
“Within the scope of his competencies, do everything possible to uphold and enforce the Constitution, as that is the fundamental duty of the President of the Republic,” he emphasized.
In his speech, Filipe criticized the current President for being aligned “with the state of affairs” in the country and, in the execution of his duties, having often played an active, even decisive, role in the state of Portuguese democracy.
He then outlined the various responsibilities a President should undertake, emphasizing that they must “uphold and enforce the Constitution” and should not merely “hover over problems, indifferent to the people’s concrete difficulties and the threats facing Portugal and the world.”
“A candidacy for President of the Republic cannot be reduced to producing generic and innocuous declarations, especially in the country’s current situation, as that suggests a desire to maintain the status quo,” he remarked, alluding to other unspecified presidential candidacies.
