The leader of the Portuguese Communist Party, Paulo Raimundo, revisited themes of creativity and activism during an event organized by the Portuguese Nurses’ Union (SEP) near Lisbon’s Gare do Oriente in celebration of International Nurses Day. He encountered humorous displays featuring boxes marked as a “vaccine against attacks on rights.”
Paulo Raimundo engagingly inquired of a nurse beside the display, “How many containers of this do you have?” The nurse quickly replied, “We’ll make as many as needed.”
He further addressed journalists, proposing that a “vast majority” of the 230 legislators would benefit from such a vaccine.
“They would be entitled not to just a small box but to a whole container, and I am convinced that the nurses would happily administer it,” Raimundo declared.
When asked jokingly whether the vaccine would be given harshly, he assured that it could be administered “gently but effectively.”
While wryly considering ordering some of the vaccine, he clarified that the government was not ill. “What makes us all sick is the current policy. To heal, we must change it. I’ll stop by later to grab a few boxes, away from the cameras,” he quipped.
The SEP’s tent highlighted the role of nurses and the importance of the National Health Service (SNS) in promoting healthy lifestyles, reproductive health care, and vaccinations. Although there was an option to check blood pressure, Raimundo declined, humorously noting it could spike “like the results” of his party, CDU.
“I’m not afraid, but it might send the numbers flying,” Raimundo admitted, referencing stress experienced during a football match between Sporting and Benfica.
He humorously anticipated another surge in tension during the final round of the league, expressing his anticipation for an “immense joy perhaps not by Saturday, but certainly by Sunday.”
While accepting an offer of condoms from another tent booth, he stated, “I won’t check my pressure, but I come prepared.”
Invited to engage in an educational computer game developed by the SEP to emphasize the SNS’s importance, Raimundo declined politely. “I have had enough firsthand experience with the SNS for reasons not altogether positive, yet I am profoundly grateful for the care, dedication, and support,” he emphasized.
Earlier, upon his arrival, he was approached by Maria Rosa, who expressed frustration about her work conditions, leaving work late at night from a shopping mall “without anything in her wallet.” She lamented, “The deductions are numerous, yet there are no available homes. I’m paying 600 euros for a single room, working every day but bringing home nothing. It’s very painful,” she shared, hoping for political change that would address the plight of the poor.
Raimundo compassionately replied, “They talk about the people, but forget them the next day,” acknowledging her hardship as she headed to another workday.
