António Leitão Amaro emphasized on Thursday that “the country is calm” on the day of the general strike. “There were impacts, we respect the minority—though it is truly a minority—that freely expressed today with strikes and demonstrations, and we greatly respect the overwhelming majority who decided to work”, stated the Minister of the Presidency.
During the Council of Ministers briefing, the minister reiterated that “today is not a normal day, it is a day with impacts for people, but it is a day where the country is calm— the protesting minority, the majority who chose to work. There’s no point in tallying accounts: We have a broad, reliable report from the public, private, and social sectors, but the response is given by the Portuguese,” he stressed.
The minister also made an ‘appeal’ to “everyone who today will listen to the radio, read the newspapers, and watch television”: “Think about your life, today, ask your friends and family: Did the majority go on strike or want to work? What happened in most cases around you?”
“Some worked from home; there are regions of the country where the effect is greater than in others, in the public sector—particularly in transport, schools, and public health, the impact is greater. In the rest of the Public Administration, the impact is significantly smaller, several of us ministers and secretaries of state have entities that depend on us where the strike adherence is zero, 2%, 3%, 7%“, he clarified, considering that “there are different realities.”
He concluded: “There were disruptions, the day was not normal, the exercise [of the strike] was legitimate, but it was a minority”.
It should be noted that, earlier in the afternoon, Leitão Amaro had downplayed the adherence rates to the general strike: “This seems more like a partial Public Service strike. The country is working. Strike adherence is insignificant”, said the Minister of the Presidency at a press conference.
The Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, stated on Thursday that the “overwhelming majority of the country is working” on the day of the general strike, highlighting that the Government remains “open to dialogue”.
