At the entrance to the mass preceding the funeral of Francisco Pinto Balsemão, who passed away on Tuesday at the age of 88, a former Minister of Finance highlighted his love for freedom, “especially in the field of media.”
“In the more political domain, I view him as the person who managed to bring forward the party he founded… He represents the feeling of losing a father, someone with whom we initiated a project to which we adhered. I must say that when I ran for the party leadership, it wouldn’t have crossed my mind to run” without his support,” she stated.
The leader of the PSD between 2008 and 2010 remarked that Balsemão was “always greatly cherished by the party” and emphasized that “everyone wanted the support, the push from Dr. Balsemão.”
Asked if today’s PSD is still the party of Francisco Pinto Balsemão, she responded affirmatively.
“The PSD is visible, it’s a lively party that remains true to its principles. Therefore, it is the party of Dr. Balsemão,” she asserted.
Shortly after 1:00 PM, the mass commenced at the church of the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon, attended by the highest-ranking state officials.
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, and Prime Minister Luís Montenegro arrived together, as they had done the day before for the vigil, without speaking to the media.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, was also present at the mass, along with former President of the Republic Aníbal Cavaco Silva.
Other attendees included the Secretary-General of the PS, José Luis Carneiro, the parliamentary leaders of the PS, Eurico Brilhante Dias, and the PSD, Hugo Soares, the spokesperson for PAN, Inês Sousa Real, State Councillor Leonor Beleza, presidential candidate Marques Mendes, and many ministers from the current PSD/CDS-PP government, as well as former Porto mayor Rui Moreira, and the mayors of Lisbon and Oeiras, Carlos Moedas and Isaltino Morais.
Socialists Ana Gomes and Edite Estrela, former CDS-PP leader Manuel Monteiro, former minister Mira Amaral, and former CIP president António Saraiva also attended the mass at Jerónimos, alongside many figures from journalism and numerous anonymous attendees.
After the mass—led by Emeritus Patriarch Cardinal Manuel Clemente—started, CDS-PP leader and Defense Minister Nuno Melo arrived.
The government declared a national mourning period for Wednesday and today, coinciding with the funeral ceremonies.
Following the mass, the procession will depart with GNR outriders to the Impresa group, with the funeral reserved for the family.
Balsemão was the founder of the Expresso weekly newspaper in 1973, during the dictatorship, SIC, Portugal’s first private television channel, in 1992, and the media conglomerate Impresa.
In 1974, following the April 25th Revolution, he co-founded, with Francisco Sá Carneiro and Magalhães Mota, the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), later known as the Social Democratic Party (PSD). He led two governments after the death of Sá Carneiro, between 1981 and 1983, and was a member of the Council of State, an advisory body to the President of the Republic, until his death.
