During a parliamentary session with the Committee on Economy and Territorial Cohesion to explain the reasons for dismissing the economist from the leadership of the Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP), Minister Manuel Castro Almeida took “political” responsibility for the decision, emphasizing that the role demands significant availability.
“The issue was his specific adaptation to the position of President of AICEP, which requires substantial availability, a strong physical presence, proximity to companies in Portugal and abroad, and the ability to mobilize and encourage the teams under his command,” the Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion explained.
Ricardo Arroja’s departure and replacement by Madalena Oliveira took place in June of this year, 19 days after the economist completed one year leading the agency, having assumed the role on June 4, 2024.
Upon hearing the minister cite the need for a physical presence of the agency’s leadership, PS Deputy Hugo Costa concluded that Ricardo Arroja was dismissed for “missing work” and demanded further clarification from the minister.
Castro Almeida responded by stating that the former president of AICEP was in no way “dismissed for missing work”.
The minister clarified that had he intended to use the expression mentioned by the deputy, he would have done so, which he did not. “[If I had intended to use the expression ‘missing work’] I would have used it, but I didn’t,” he countered.
Chega Deputy Filipe Melo requested further explanations regarding the details of the dismissal, but the minister declined to “relay the conversation” he had with the economist at the time of his departure.
The minister further stated that the government “has the authority to appoint and dismiss according to the law” and that in certain situations, “indemnities in case of dismissal” are applicable, as was the case here.
Upon his dismissal, Ricardo Arroja deemed the outcome “wrong, given the work developed,” but “legitimate.”
“In addition to multiple internal capacity-building initiatives and opening AICEP, E.P.E. to the outside world — to civil society, companies, associations, and other public bodies — which the Board, led by me, had the opportunity to promote, we also maintained intense administrative and commercial activity,” he responded in a statement on the day the announcement was published in Diário da República, June 26.
The minister also denied any “political-partisan motivation” in choosing Ricardo Arroja’s successor, Madalena Oliveira e Silva, noting that he has retained leaders appointed by the Socialist Party in the past, as the criterion should be loyalty to executing the government’s program. “A director must be loyal to the government’s program,” he stated.
Following this intervention, PS Deputy Carlos Pereira recalled that in 2024, the first government of Luís Montenegro (PSD/CDS-PP) also dismissed Filipe Santos Costa from the presidency of AICEP while the former president “was doing excellent work” at the agency.
