At a gathering in Angeiras dock, Matosinhos, after enjoying sardines and a fish soup prepared by the local organization, Paulo Raimundo emphasized that the residents of this area “live the reality of life” contrary to the narratives implying that “everything is fine” in the country.
“Everything is growing, the economy, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)… As if any of us ate GDP. Here no one eats GDP, here we eat an extraordinary fish soup, the best I’ve ever had,”, joked Paulo Raimundo.
The leader of the PCP reiterated that “the people do not eat GDP,” stressing that fishermen, retirees, and workers face “difficult lives,” and highlighted a “severe problem of insecurity” in Portugal, associated with precariousness.
“The greatest insecurity issue in our country is the precariousness affecting the daily lives of young workers. Not knowing if they will work tomorrow, if there will be a salary, if they can sustain their lives the next day. This is instability. This is insecurity,” he stated.
After the CDU candidate for Matosinhos, José Pedro Rodrigues, was briefly interrupted by a homeless person accusing him of ignoring their plight, Paulo Raimundo addressed this interruption, highlighting it as linked to another societal issue in Portugal.
“There are two million people, 300,000 children, living in poverty in our country. This difficult life comprises the majority of our people, the majority of those who live and work here in Matosinhos. That’s why we are the people’s strength,” he declared.
Paulo Raimundo asserted that members of the CDU do not merely “talk about problems,” because they experience them too, urging everyone, “regardless of their previous political and party choices,” to vote for the coalition.
“The everyday people know well that the story of moderate rents of 2,300 euros is a tale they will never see in life because they never even dream of such an opportunity for a single day,” he noted.
Description the people of Matosinhos as “people of the land seasoned with the salt of the sea,” Paulo Raimundo urged them to “vote with your life, vote with your problems, vote for those who need more nurseries for their children, access to housing, better transport conditions in the municipality.”
“And if you vote with your lives, then there’s only one alternative: vote for the CDU,” he stated.
Paulo Raimundo further commented on the candidacy of José Pedro Rodrigues, currently a councilor at the municipality, arguing that the “vast majority” of the people in Matosinhos do not “just need to elect José Pedro.”
“We need more Josés Pedros Rodrigues. More Josés Pedros Rodrigues in the Municipal Chamber, more Josés Pedros Rodrigues in each parish council. This is the challenge presented,” he concluded.
