“Today, Chega will directly question the prime minister and the Transparency Agency regarding the opposition and the reasons behind it, trying to understand if the prime minister is trying to hide any element or reason for his increased wealth, or if he has legitimate grounds under the law to do so,” stated André Ventura.
Speaking to journalists at the party headquarters in Lisbon, the president of Chega suggested it is necessary to clarify “whether the publicized reports about the extent are true, concerning the elements the prime minister sought to conceal, or if his intent was merely to restrict access to some information that could compromise security elements.”
Chega aspires to understand “what criteria were applied to the prime minister and whether they are used as generally stipulated by law for public office holders, or what was the reason behind the approved decision by the Transparency Agency.”
André Ventura emphasized that if Luís Montenegro “does not take the step that will allow clarification of this and other domains of a problem that persists due to a deliberate will to hide,” there will be “no satisfactory solution.”
The Chega leader opined that the reports released on Sunday “cause some astonishment and, once again, challenge the credibility and integrity of the prime minister, albeit without the necessary clarity.”
“I believe the prime minister could clarify to Chega why he is opposing access to certain elements, differentially, I think, from other holders of political office. What is the reason for this, and why did the Transparency Agency approve this request, since it implies some concealment?” he indicated.
Ventura is seeking to understand which elements are being concealed, especially if “they would allow identifying a certain home or area, or if they are elements that enable analysis of the property acquisition path or how those properties were acquired or financed, which would be more serious.”
On Sunday, it was reported that the prime minister allegedly opposed “the disclosure of the property register numbers and the Transparency Agency accepted,” adding that “the prime minister does not allow public access to the register numbers of the 55 properties declared.”
Upon leaving the closing session of the PSD Summer University, the prime minister denied having opposed the disclosure of the register numbers of his declared properties to the Transparency Agency.
However, in a statement sent later, Luís Montenegro stated that he opposed public access to “sensitive personal data” concerning six urban properties of his residence and family, not 55, pointing out that all were declared to the Transparency Agency.
“Contrary to reports, the opposition did not pertain to 55 properties. It refers solely to six urban properties that constitute his permanent residence and the addresses of the closest family residences. This opposition request is directly founded in law and, hence, was approved by the Transparency Agency,” a statement from Luís Montenegro’s office indicated, reacting to what it branded as “incorrect and misleading news.”
The Government chief’s office mentioned that “the request submitted to the Transparency Agency aimed exclusively to ensure the protection of sensitive personal data allowing the identification of the prime minister’s and family’s home addresses, as is the case with other political office holders,” maintaining it is a matter of security.
