The regional branch of the Communist Party (PCP) of the Azores has criticized the plan and budget for the Azores for 2026, arguing that the documents continue “the obsession to privatize everything possible, hiding the consequences this will have on the lives of the Azoreans”.
Regarding SATA, the party emphasized in a statement, “if the plan proceeds as announced, Azoreans will pay for SATA’s debt for many years and will have less mobility”.
The communists suggest the current postponement of Azores Airlines’ privatization could be used to negotiate more seriously and genuinely with the European Union to “protect SATA, clarifying its unique function as an airline for an outermost region”.
In a press release, PCP/Açores stated that with this Plan and Budget, the Regional Government continues “a right-wing policy that fails to address the needs of the Azoreans and continues to increase social inequalities”.
The statement added, “The Government [of the Azores] has opted for a list of intentions unlikely to be realized, such as the PRR, aiming to achieve in six months what they haven’t done in recent years, whether in housing or other areas.”
According to the communists, “a policy of low wages and insufficient pensions remains, as well as the drama of job insecurity, particularly affecting young workers and, consequently, the region’s future”.
PCP/Açores argues that “insufficient responses from the social functions of the State and the region in areas such as health, education, and practically all domains of public administration, due to the lack of resources in the various services, contribute to worsening these difficulties”.
“It is a Plan and Budget that devalues the productive sector, cutting support and providing it late, whether in agriculture or fisheries,” the statement added.
For the communists, the reality “demonstrates that the realization of this Plan and Budget is only possible thanks to the convergence of Chega and the passivity of the PS”.
