The wildfire affecting Madeira Island since Wednesday continues unabated and has sparked a political controversy, leading to numerous criticisms of Miguel Albuquerque, president of the regional government.
It all began on Friday when it was reported that the national government had contacted the Madeiran executive president to offer support in fighting the fire, but Miguel Albuquerque had conveyed that the resources on the ground were sufficient at that time.
To Lusa news agency, a source from Albuquerque’s office specified that the contact was made by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel, but the president of the Madeiran Government informed that “due to the difficult access areas” where the fires were occurring, it was not possible to allocate more resources. “At the moment, it is not necessary,” he reinforced. The following morning, Saturday, the same source reiterated to Lusa that the help offered by the Republic was not needed.
As hours passed, the situation continued to worsen, and the opposition spoke out with criticisms of the regional government president.
The leader of PS/Madeira, Paulo Cafôfo, described Miguel Albuquerque’s decision as “incomprehensible and irresponsible.” “If nothing else, as a precaution, this refusal by Miguel Albuquerque, in an attitude we already know of ‘everything is under control,’ demonstrates that we cannot trust the one who should be the first to ensure the safety of people and property,” said the insular socialist leader in a statement.
In the same note, Paulo Cafôfo also questioned the absence of Miguel Albuquerque and Pedro Ramos, the regional secretary responsible for Civil Protection in the Madeiran government, as they had not yet been at the fire scene.
CDS-PP, which has a parliamentary incidence agreement with PSD in the Regional Legislative Assembly, also called for reinforcement of resources to combat the fires. JPP and IL also expressed solidarity with the populations affected by the fire, as well as with all operatives involved in the combat, while PAN expressed “its concern about the fires” and highlighted the “tireless work of firefighters who are on the front line.”
An Operational Force would eventually depart from the mainland to Madeira. Pedro Ramos appeared for a press conference, announcing the activation of the Regional Emergency Plan, shortly after reiterating to journalists that help from the mainland was not necessary, pointing out that the region had not exhausted its operational capacity.
The Regional Civil Protection would also announce that, after all, the region would receive elements from the Joint Operational Force of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority.
The team departed at 9:45 PM on Saturday from the Figo Maduro military terminal in Lisbon and consists of 76 operatives. It landed in Madeira in the early hours, aboard an Air Force plane.
When questioned about the change in position about two hours after the initial statements, Pedro Ramos justified it with the “evolution of the situation” and the forecasts from the Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA).
As hours unfolded, the concern of the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, would also become known. In a note distributed by the office of the Republic’s representative for the autonomous region, it was stated that Marcelo was aware of the fire situation and had expressed “concern and solidarity.”
“The Republic’s representative has been informing His Excellency the President of the Republic permanently, who has conveyed his great concern and solidarity,” the note read.
Moreover, Marcelo has reportedly already spoken with Albuquerque, according to SIC Notícias.
After an intense day, Miguel Albuquerque would finally speak out, denying having rejected the reinforcement of resources from the mainland to the region.
The president of the Madeira Government said he had already arranged on Friday with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel, to send Civil Protection resources.
“I had already arranged yesterday [Friday] with the Government […] to send the force,” Miguel Albuquerque stated on Saturday night, in statements to journalists at the Civil Protection Command post in the parish of Curral das Freiras, in the municipality of Câmara de Lobos, where he went after interrupting his vacation on Porto Santo island.
The governor considered that the criticisms of not immediately accepting help from the mainland came from “political failures who take advantage of this situation.”
Regarding being absent in recent days due to being on vacation, Miguel Al