“Admiral Gouveia e Melo may have many qualities, but he lacks the skills and qualifications to serve as President of the Republic in the uncertain and complex international framework anticipated for the next five years,” argued Aníbal Cavaco Silva in an opinion piece for the online newspaper Observador.
In this text, Cavaco Silva expresses the need to alert the Portuguese people about “the risk of instability that Portugal might face if a President without the skills and qualifications to deal with difficult, uncertain, and complex situations is elected, and to defend the national interest.”
“In these times of uncertainty and threats, it is crucial that the future President of the Republic thoroughly understands the workings of our political system, builds bridges, and facilitates understandings between political parties, economic and social forces, the government, and the opposition, and can act as a last-resort safeguard if the country faces a severe crisis,” he maintains.
Thus, he considers, “due to his political experience and his good judgment and personal qualifications, I believe Luís Marques Mendes is best suited to fulfill this task.”
Cavaco Silva, who knows Marques Mendes well as he was a minister in one of his governments, emphasizes that the PSD-supported candidate has “political experience, understands the workings and specifics of democratic institutions, the governance of the country, and foreign policy.”
“And he is a person of good judgment, a very important quality for a President of the Republic,” remarks the former Prime Minister (1985-1995) and Head of State (2006-2016).
For Cavaco Silva, the next five years represent a “period of great international uncertainty and complexity, with inevitable consequences for Portugal,” citing the “erratic and aggressive policy of President Trump towards the European Union,” the “violation of World Trade Organization rules harming Portuguese exports,” “Russia’s threat to European security,” “the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the instability of financial markets.”
“As the next 5 years are a period during which Portugal should recuperate the economic growth needed to improve the population’s living conditions, choosing a President of the Republic capable of ensuring political stability, building bridges, and facilitating consensus is of utmost importance,” he argues.
