In a statement, the socialists in the European Parliament affirmed that the former Portuguese prime minister distinguished himself “in all areas by moderation, balance, and consideration, traits that made him a significant figure” in democratic Portugal.
The PS delegation in the Brussels and Strasbourg plenaries described the former social democratic leader as a “notable figure of Portuguese democracy, to which he contributed decisively, as the founder of the newspaper Expresso and prime minister.”
“At a time in our collective life where we witness the rise of extremes, the PS deputies to the European Parliament, where in 1986, he represented Portugal, express to his family and friends, as well as to his party, the PSD, the most sincere condolences for the death of Francisco Pinto Balsemão,” the party added.
Francisco Pinto Balsemão, former PSD leader, ex-prime minister, and founder of Expresso and SIC, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 88.
The news of the death of the PSD’s number one member was conveyed by the social-democratic president and prime minister, Luís Montenegro, during a meeting of the party’s national council in Lisbon.
Balsemão was the founder, in 1973, of the weekly Expresso, even during the dictatorship, of SIC, the first private television in Portugal, in 1992, and the media group Impresa.
In 1974, after the 25th of April, he founded, with Francisco Sá Carneiro and Magalhães Mota, the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), later the Social Democratic Party PSD. He led two governments after Sá Carneiro’s death, between 1981 and 1983, and was, until his death, a member of the Council of State, a consultative body of the President of the Republic.
