During a parliamentary plenary debate, the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, announced that two bills imposing stricter measures will not be put to a vote in an effort to foster dialogue with other parties.
“We want to do our part, hoping you will do yours as well. In the spirit of those in PS, IL, AD parties, and Chega who seem willing to improve the nationality law, the executive has requested the discussion in the committee without a vote so that within a feasible timeframe, we can have a discussion that unites the country and makes it more cohesive,” said Leitão Amaro.
The minister criticized PS’s stance, which had announced it would not approve a law with what it considers to be unconstitutional elements.
“On the left, I must say I remain concerned with the state of denial they are in; they do not see the reality they have created, the transformations they induced without ever explaining them to Portugal,” asserted Leitão Amaro, who also criticized Chega, addressing André Ventura by stating that “Portugal belongs to Portugal and the Portuguese, not to Chega.”
“Portugal does not belong to Chega, just as it doesn’t belong to the Bloco de Esquerda. Let’s make a law for all of us,” he urged.
“This implies valuing and demanding knowledge of the language, culture, and our rights,” the minister added.
The two requests presented by the Government were included in the revised voting guide made available in the morning, absent from the initial version on Thursday.
On Thursday, PS had suggested moving to the specialty phase without a vote, but this did not receive PSD’s agreement.
