During a panel session presenting the proposals of Iniciativa Liberal (IL) for the upcoming legislative elections at the São Bento da Vitória Monastery in Porto, João Cotrim Figueiredo stated that the Portuguese state is “failing” its commitments to the social and intergenerational contracts it established with citizens.
The current IL Member of the European Parliament remarked that each citizen is a “contractor,” agreeing with the state to allow “a bit of their rights and freedom” in exchange for the state ensuring functions like “defending life, property, and providing quality public services.”
This social contract, whose theoretical basis was developed in the 18th century, is complemented by what Cotrim Figueiredo referred to as the intergenerational contract, developed in the last century, aiming to ensure current generations leave a “capable planet,” “capable public finances,” and “capable Social Security” for future generations.
“The drama in this campaign, and why it is so important to listen to IL, is that both contracts are being breached. The social contract and the intergenerational contract both are being violated by the state,” accused Cotrim Figueiredo, pointing out that “tax burden is at its maximum, the quality of public services is at its minimum,” and “Social Security is unsustainable.”
He then discussed the television debate between Luís Montenegro and Pedro Nuno Santos, describing it as “depressing.”
“They are well prepared for daily management, but for the enormous challenges Portugal will face, especially fulfilling the social and intergenerational contracts, those gentlemen are not suitable, they are not sufficiently prepared,” he asserted.
For Cotrim Figueiredo, one of those leaders, indirectly referring to Luís Montenegro, “needs IL for Portugal to have a future and the necessary economic growth.”
“The coalition AD needs IL. On the 18th, what we are doing is our part of the social contract; by voting for IL, we demand an adequate return for the funds, resources, and rights we forego in favor of the state. We do our part, and we demand the state does its,” he declared.
Also present on João Cotrim Figueiredo’s panel was economist Óscar Afonso, who, in the last legislative elections in March 2024, was on the AD lists as “number four” in Porto, elected but declined to assume the position of deputy. In March, he was appointed by Luís Montenegro’s government to chair the CMVM Advisory Council.
At this IL event, Óscar Afonso, positioned as an independent, stated that currently, Portugal is doing “very poorly” in terms of economic growth, stressing that since 1999, the country has grown an average of 1% of GDP per year, which means it will only “double the GDP in about 20 years,” unlike other countries that, with a 3% annual growth, “double in about 25 years.”
“We must do something and be much more reform-oriented. We have very low productivity, I think state reform is crucial,” he stated, criticizing the disaggregation of parishes and asserting the need for lower fiscal burdens.
“For IRS, there has been a slight relief, but I believe there is still room for more, and IRC, I think, needs to decrease significantly,” he added, after recently publishing an article advocating a post-election alliance between AD and IL.
[News updated at 8:12 PM]
