The protests, which will continue until Friday, involve distributing informational leaflets at railway and bus terminals, the airport, and the maritime station. Sinapol aims to “demonstrate to citizens that police officers are undervalued and that, because of this, there are fewer officers,” the president of the union said.
Armando Ferreira stated that “the constant devaluation of the career has had direct and alarming consequences,” with “fewer officers active and a decreasing number of candidates for the profession,” which jeopardizes “public safety and the sustainability of security forces in the medium and long term.”
With this protest, taking place today at Gare do Oriente near the railway and bus terminals, Sinapol aims to express discontent regarding the “lack of professional and salary appreciation.”
“These actions aim to draw attention to the urgent need for concrete measures that professionally and financially value Portuguese police officers, given the continuous lack of response from the Government to the serious and increasingly pressing problems affecting security forces and their professionals,” he stated.
The final day of the protest on Friday coincides with a meeting Sinapol has with the Minister of Internal Administration as part of the negotiation process that began in September.
Armando Ferreira announced he would not attend the meeting but would be outside, at Praça do Comércio, distributing leaflets, explaining his absence by saying that he does not consider these meetings to be negotiations.
“We don’t want meetings; we want negotiations,” he emphasized, noting he is unaware of what the minister intends for the sector.
Other Sinapol leaders will be present at the meeting with Maria Lúcia Amaral.
