The agreement, confirmed by António Costa’s lawyer Manuel Magalhães e Silva, has been communicated to the court. It is now pending a decision that will ratify the agreement and conclude the civil actions filed by both parties, which were initially scheduled to be heard this month.
The controversy erupted following the publication of Carlos Costa’s book, “O Governador”, in November 2022. In it, the former governor alleged that he faced pressure from António Costa’s government to block the removal of Isabel dos Santos from Banco BIC. He accused the former prime minister of political interference in the process concerning the Angolan businesswoman, the daughter of former Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos.
During the book launch, Carlos Costa confirmed receiving a phone call from António Costa on the afternoon of April 12, 2016. This call reportedly took place after the former governor had met with Isabel dos Santos, her business associate Fernando Telles, and the director of the supervisory department, Carlos Albuquerque.
According to Carlos Costa, during this call, the prime minister allegedly stated, “One cannot treat the daughter of a friendly country’s president poorly.”
“From now on, it’s up to each individual to draw their own conclusions,” Carlos Costa stated, leading António Costa to announce his intention to sue the former governor of Banco de Portugal for defamation.
On the day of the book’s launch, António Costa reiterated that the statements made by Carlos Costa were false. After the former governor failed to “retract or publicly apologize,” António Costa proceeded to engage legal counsel.
The following day, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa publicly defended António Costa against the allegations made by the former governor. He argued that Portuguese authorities acted in the national interest in the case involving Isabel dos Santos.
In April 2023, António Costa filed a lawsuit against Carlos Costa at the Lisbon Civil Local Court. Carlos Costa responded in May with a countersuit, demanding that the former prime minister retract his “defamatory statements” and naming Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa as a witness.
