The Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) into TAP, which will cover the years 2020, 2021 and 2022, took office this Wednesday. The parliamentary groups agreed to hold a meeting of the bureau and coordinators immediately after the inauguration, in order to speed up the process. The goal is for the CPI to be ready to work by next Tuesday, the 28th.
Deputy Jorge Seguro Sanches, from the PS, was confirmed as President of the Commission, promising “exemption, rigor and cooperation among all in the name of the public interest”. Deputy Carlos Pereira, from the PS, proposed that the table should meet as soon as possible, and had the agreement of all the parties represented.
The first vice-president of the CPI will be Paulo Rios de Oliveira, of the PSD, with Filipe Melo, of Chega, in charge of the second vice-presidency. The work will last 90 days, and is expected to end on May 23rd. It will involve the consultation and analysis of documentation (to be requested by the parties), the carrying out of several inquiries and, finally, the preparation of a report.
At the beginning of the meeting, the president of the Assembly of the Republic, Augusto Santos Silva, recalled that the CPIs are a “particularly powerful instrument”, representing “one of the most important tasks that a parliamentarian can perform”. “I wish you all good work, in the diversity that characterizes you,” he added.
CPI will have 17 deputies, nine of them from the PS
The Commission will be composed of 17 deputies, nine of them from the PS. The Socialists will be represented by Carlos Pereira (coordinator), Ana Paula Bernardo, Vera Brás, Bruno Aragão, Hugo Carvalho, Fátima Fonseca, Rita Madeira and Hugo Costa, in addition to Seguro Sanches. As alternate members, Miguel Costa Matos and Cristina Sousa will be represented.
The PSD will have four members on the Commission: Paulo Moniz (coordinator), Hugo Carneiro, Paulo Rios de Oliveira, and Patrícia Dantas. João Barbosa de Melo and Hugo Oliveira will be the substitute Social Democrats.
The IL deputy in the CPI to TAP will be Bernardo Blanco, who will have Carlos Guimarães Pinto as his substitute. On the Chega side, the work will be carried out by Filipe Melo, with Pedro Pessanha in the “shadow”.
On the Left, the PCP will be represented by Bruno Dias and Duarte Alves, the latter as a substitute. BE has nominated Mariana Mortágua as member and Pedro Filipe Soares to replace her when necessary. PAN and Livre will not be represented in the CPI.
The inquiry into TAP was proposed by BE, following the case of half a million euros in compensation paid to former director Alexandra Reis. Some of the people to be heard are Fernando Medina (Finance Minister), Pedro Nuno Santos (former Infrastructure Minister), Hugo Mendes (former Secretary of State for Infrastructure) and Alexandra Reis herself.