“The organizational battle is a central problem of the political line and the conception of the party we want to be,” stated Rosas, addressing delegates at the XIV National Convention, held at the Pavilhão do Casal Vistoso in Lisbon.
Fernando Rosas, a proponent of motion A put forward by the current leadership, primarily addressed the party’s members, questioning whether Bloco wants to be a “fleeting party” of “hit and run” or a “relevant party for the working people and progressive forces.”
According to Fernando Rosas, without “a true social rooting,” the Bloco de Esquerda will be vulnerable “to attacks from reactionary and fascist right-wing groups.”
Rosas argued that BE should be capable of “being in organized and enduring struggle,” not only “stirring popular fights but building and influencing them through a permanent organization.”
“If we want a revolutionary, ecologist, and socialist party, we must be in companies, workers’ committees, unions, popular neighborhoods, residents’ associations, schools, student associations (…) feminist movements, immigrant and minority defense associations, and cultural movements and initiatives,” he listed.
“Do not be deceived, nothing will be easy or quick in this battlefield for the organization and reorganization of Bloco. This is a Herculean, prolonged task. It requires a true cultural revolution in the party’s organizational concepts,” he said, earning a standing ovation from the former coordinator Francisco Louçã and some delegates.
For Rosas, reorganizing the party, which lost a significant portion of its electoral base and was reduced to just one MP in the parliament in the May elections, “demands specific and continuous attention” from the future political committee.
“It cannot be left to chance,” he warned, considering that if it is, “everything will remain the same.”
