André Ventura stated that the former Minister of Health, Marta Temido (PS), “resigned for less than this.” “We continue to witness a poor performance from this Minister of Health every day, whether it’s pregnant women giving birth at hospital doors, emergency rooms that are closed, or now another death, linked to the failure of health services,” he observed.
For André Ventura, merely taking responsibility is no longer sufficient. He suggested the Minister should “solve one problem immediately by stepping down and allowing someone with the responsibility to lead the Ministry of Health,” as “human beings continue to die.”
“Without wanting to create any dissonance, there’s a question I would really like to ask: if it had been one of these immigrants who recently arrived in Portugal needing health services, would they have failed too?” questioned the Chega leader.
According to André Ventura, there has been a trend where “those arriving now from Bangladesh, Pakistan, wherever, are prioritized over those already here and receive privileged treatment.”
During a visit to a social neighborhood in Leiria, which was established to accommodate returnees from former Portuguese colonies, André Ventura received a letter from a former combatant, claiming the State abandoned him. “A former combatant who was completely abandoned by his country,” criticized the Chega leader, describing it as a “troublesome situation for Portugal.”
In the week when immigration, nationality, and border control are being discussed in parliament, it’s essential to “ensure that these people are not forgotten,” he emphasized, criticizing the focus in recent years on “prioritizing those arriving from outside and forgetting people like these who have lived here for years, Portuguese born in what was Portuguese territory.”
“It’s all, as the Government usually says, for the new immigrants, and we are profoundly against that,” he noted.
In the coming days, André Ventura hopes to reach a consensus between Chega and PSD on the issue of nationality and immigration so that by Friday, the voting day, they can “advance in some areas, whether it’s border control or immigration control.”
The loss of nationality in the event of a crime is also a key point for Chega, disagreeing with the 10-year rule. “If someone is convicted of terrorism, having become Portuguese, what sense does it make for them to remain Portuguese?” he questioned.
The rule must be “applicable to everyone, everyone, everyone, as the Prime Minister says.”
“I wanted to urge the Government to accelerate this step by Friday, because with great probability these bills will undergo constitutional scrutiny and take time to come into effect. We all understand that in the chaos the country is in, it cannot afford further delays. We must be able to decide quickly on this matter,” he emphasized.
Chega presented alternative proposals to the issue of Personal Income Tax (IRS) after the Government presented its proposal, with André Ventura hoping to reach an agreement.
For Chega, there should be a tax relief on the IRS that “is felt by those who earn less and the middle class, rather than benefiting those who earn more.”
Regarding the non-submission of the Prime Minister’s income statement, Ventura stated that Luís Montenegro’s attitude “generates suspicion and political instability.” “A Prime Minister who doesn’t want their income statement or asset declaration known, when they said (…) they were going to be the most transparent Prime Minister in the country’s history, is a Prime Minister who raises suspicions about their conduct. Anyone in public life must be transparent,” he declared.
