“The period of government instability led to a time of impasse for the association,” said Luísa Salgueiro, in an interview one week before the ANMP congress where a new president will be chosen.
The socialist municipal leader, also serving as mayor of Matosinhos in the Porto district, was elected in 2021 as the first woman to head the ANMP.
However, Luísa Salgueiro is set to leave this position after the PSD secured the most municipal wins in the October local elections, reclaiming ANMP leadership from the PS, held since 2013.
“I would say the term was marked by two phases: a very productive phase with significant effects and then a period of political crisis and government change, including two governments in the latter half of the municipal term, resulting in limited developments,” she stated.
According to the mayor, the new PSD/CDS-PP Government expressed strong intentions and political alignment, particularly with the minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, but it ended there.
“There were very aligned speeches, but without significant results,” she continued.
Luísa Salgueiro disclosed that negotiations between the ANMP and the PSD/CDS-PP Government lacked the tensions seen with António Costa’s PS Government.
Prime Minister António Costa was a challenging negotiating partner, with very tough negotiations always benefitting the association, she admitted.
Despite considering him an “extraordinary ally and enthusiast” of decentralization, she noted that discussions with António Costa were consistently “very tense.”
“I hear the criticisms about the political alignment between the ANMP and the Government, but I only tolerate them because they stem from pure ignorance, as there was no alignment, no subordination. There was indeed a lot of discussion, a lot of tension, and the outcome always favored the association; it was always the association that won,” she emphasized.
The new ANMP leader will be elected in the congress scheduled for December 13 and 14 in Viana do Castelo.
The mayor of Pombal, Pedro Pimpão, is a candidate for the ANMP leadership, he stated to the news agency.
