Raul Almeida has confirmed his withdrawal from the party, citing “various political disagreements” and asserting that the party is “subjugated to the PSD and on a path to total irrelevance”.
“The limit was reached this weekend with the stance on Palestine,” he stated, arguing that opposing the recognition of the State of Palestine represents a “profound betrayal of the party’s charter of principles,” which he described as “profoundly humanist and incompatible with the genocide” he believes is occurring in that area.
In a resignation letter sent Tuesday to the CDS president, Nuno Melo, Almeida emphasized his stance as “a proponent of the two-state solution” and “an advocate for the Palestinian people, their rights, and autonomy,” recalling that “representing CDS, he was a promoter and co-organizer of the first official visit of the Portuguese parliament to Palestine.”
“I witness daily the massacres, blatant violations of Human Rights, hegemonic occupation, severe breaches of International Law, and death in its various violent and inhumane forms perpetrating diverse war crimes. The absolution or whitewashing of this horror irreparably stains those who do it, blatantly denies, and severely aggresses the declaration of principles of July 19, 1974,” he states.
In the letter, Raul Almeida also criticizes “the party’s growing insignificance, its absence from the media agenda, its submission to the PSD, the lack of leadership,” and “miscellaneous blunders that entertained public opinion.”
Raul Almeida began his political involvement with the Centrist Youth 40 years ago. Within the CDS-PP, he served as president of the Ovar municipal office and the Aveiro district office and was part of the leadership under Paulo Portas, Ribeiro e Castro, and Francisco Rodrigues dos Santos.
He also served as a deputy during three terms. Currently, he is a municipal deputy in Porto, elected through the movement led by Porto’s mayor, Rui Moreira, and leads the municipal bench.
After supporting Rui Moreira’s candidacy, the CDS-PP is part of a coalition in these municipal elections led by former minister Pedro Duarte of the PSD. Raul Almeida is listed among the candidates for Porto’s Municipal Assembly under independent candidate Filipe Araújo.
At the municipal level, Raul Almeida also points to disagreements with other elected officials.
“It has been very challenging for me to lead a municipal bench where the majority of CDS deputies in this bench vote differently from the bench’s leadership and obviously from Rui Moreira’s coordination,” he notes.
To Lusa, the official complained about votes aligned with the PSD, considering it a sign that the “commitment to the AD and the coalition is greater than the commitment to Rui Moreira.”
