“Gouveia e Melo has specialized in frequently criticizing me and making personal attacks. I don’t think it’s very nice, but I understand. He is falling in the polls, and I am rising,” he stated, refusing to “respond in kind.”
Luís Marques Mendes argued that “it is necessary to elevate the debate and run a positive campaign” with a focus “primarily on the country.”
The presidential candidate for early next year’s elections spoke to journalists on the sidelines of a visit to the event “Grandes escolhas — vinhos e sabores,” which began today at the Lisbon International Fair (FIL).
Luís Marques Mendes also stated that if elected President of the Republic, he would serve in the role with independence.
“And I will be, in terms of independence, in the Presidency as Mário Soares, Jorge Sampaio, Cavaco Silva, or Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa were, four presidents who came from the parties but were independent of the parties afterward; they did not do parties any favors. I will be the same,” he emphasized.
The former PSD leader expressed “great pride” in his political past but noted that he is “very independent” and anticipated that he will not “be doing favors for any party.”
Marques Mendes also maintained that “no one has the monopoly on independence.”
In an interview with the Lusa agency, released today, Admiral Gouveia e Melo considered that a President of the Republic can only be a regime moderator if impartial, and suggested that his opponent Marques Mendes will owe a debt to the PSD, which will need to be repaid.
The presidential candidate stated that Portugal needs a genuinely impartial President of the Republic, not a “Trojan Horse” for a party.
“That Trojan horse can do two things: It’s there to validate everything the party does, or it’s there to, at the first opportunity, find a situation to overthrow a government. It is very difficult to maintain impartiality when we owe many loyalties, not only because of our trajectory but even due to the support we have at the time of the election,” warned Henrique Gouveia e Melo.
At this point, the former Chief of Naval Staff went further: “Dr. Marques Mendes can say he is not from the PSD, that he is independent, etc. Without the PSD, he would not be elected. So, he will have a debt to the PSD. And that debt will be charged,” he accused.
