“You will never hear much from me in terms of diagnostics because I believe the country is tired of diagnostics,” stated today at the Serralves Foundation in Porto, after participating in the Factory 2030 conference marking the ninth anniversary of the Eco newspaper.
The presidential candidate’s aim is to encourage ambitious thinking, citing the example of 180 billion euros invested from European Union structural funds, which resulted in a one percentage point increase in the country’s convergence with the EU.
“In practice, stagnation. This cannot happen again. I wish someone would tell this to the Portuguese people. Because I think no Portuguese knows these figures and this result,” he emphasized.
For Marques Mendes, “if we continue on the same path for the next 30 years, we will not get anywhere.”
From a future projection standpoint, Marques Mendes also expressed a desire to utilize the constitutional figure of sending messages to parliament at the start of a potential presidential term.
“It’s a constitutional figure that is rarely used,” he explained, aiming to send one titled “Economic and Social Challenges for the Next 10 Years,” noting that this act “is not about making diagnoses,” since “if it’s challenges, it’s for the future, not the past.”
When asked about current issues plaguing the health sector, he reiterated the need to present results quickly but preferred not to focus on the “daily froth.”
“One day we talk about temporary workers, another day we discuss emergencies not functioning, other days it’s about births happening in ambulances or outside hospitals, and we keep switching topics without solving the issues,” he pointed out.
However, he deemed this a “regrettable” reality that “cannot happen.”
Luís Marques Mendes also mentioned that the support of former President of the Republic Cavaco Silva “was a surprise,” but he expressed being “pleased” because “he is not just anyone.”
“He is a person who has vast experience in the presidential function and, in my view, was the best Prime Minister of Portuguese democracy. So, evidently, it’s support that touches me and that I am deeply grateful for,” he noted.
