🇵🇹 Portugal's politics and elections 2.0

[Mike88]

"Russiagate"?: Lisbon city hall gave personal data of anti-Putin activists in Portugal to the Russian government.

https://twitter.com/JornalNoticias/status/1402747232143609857

Lisbon City Council provided data from anti-Putin activists to Russia.

A weird story broke this evening. The media is reporting that Lisbon city hall has provided to Russia, the home addresses and names of 3 anti-Putin Russian activists living in Portugal. These 3 activists held a rally in Lisbon against the Putin government last January. This was revealed by one of the activists as she says that while analysing the mails between her and the Lisbon city hall, to announce the protest, she also found the e-mail addresses of the Russian embassy and the Russian foreign ministry, meaning that her data was also sent to the Russian government. The activist has already sent a protest to Lisbon city hall adding she could also go to the Courts. She also says she's scared of what will happen to her if she goes to Russia. Lisbon city confirms the email and says they are trying to fix the mistake and will open an inquiry into the matter. Plus, Lisbon city has already asked Russian authorities to delete the data.

[Mike88]

Russiagate: Lisbon city hall rejects accusation that they are complicit with the Russian regime, but confirms the sharing of information and will change procedures.

https://twitter.com/RTPNoticias/status/1402904228746743809

CML rejects any accusations of complicity with the Russian regime and amends internal procedures.

The ongoing controversy regarding the "Russiagate" continues. From left to right, parties are demanding explanations from Lisbon mayor Fernando Medina, and the rightwing candidates, PSD and IL, for Lisbon mayor, are openly demanding Mr Medina resignation. Lisbon city hall has sent a press release confirming the sharing of information with the Russian authorities but stressing that this was a common practice, hinting they also shared info about protesters with other countries. The city says they are sorry for the procedure and will change their internal organization to prevent more sharing of information. Adding to this, Lisbon city rejects any accusation that they are complicit with the Russian regime, concluding that those accusations are just "political leverage".

[Mike88]

Ok, this remark by the Portuguese-Russian activist which had her personal data sent to Russia by Lisbon city hall, Ksenia Ashrafullina, is quite brutal:

(...)
Ashrafullina said she was pleased by the political reaction in Lisbon and Brussels, but surprised that it was coming in June instead of in January.

"I told Portuguese journalists about this in January but nobody wanted to report on it," she said.

"I get that with the elections coming up, we're part of a bigger political game now. .. If that helps to make Portugal a more democratic country, I guess that's fine."

From here: https://www.politico.eu/article/fernando-medina-lisbon-russia-dissidents-personal-data-sharing/

[Mike88]

Russiagate: The media reveals that Lisbon city hall also gave info to the governments of Israel, Venezuela and China, as the Secret Services are assessing how in much danger the 3 Russian activists are in Portugal.

https://twitter.com/TSFRadio/status/1403115781412462593

Lisbon City Hall also shared data with embassies in Israel, China and Venezuela.

The "Russiagate" controversy continues to dominate headlines, with new revelations. After Lisbon mayor Fernando Medina apologized for the sharing of personal data with Moscow, he said that the procedures were changed in April and that he only found out about everything when the news broke on Wednesday. He also opened an investigation to see if this happened in other cases. This is generating a lot of questions about how much into the matter the mayor knows and how local services in Lisbon work. In the meantime, the media continues to reveal that the Russia data sharing seems to not be an isolated case. Lisbon city hall, is now revealed, also shared personal data of protesters and activists with the embassies of Israel, Venezuela and China. A pró-Palestine group, who organized a rally in Lisbon, told this to the media and added that, when complaining to city hall, he was informed that in other occasions, the embassies of Venezuela and China were also informed. At the same time, the Secret Services (SIS) are assessing the security of the 3 Russian activists in Portugal. The SIS will issue a conclusion that could force the police to personally protect these activists.

[Mike88]

2021 local elections: PS picks Eduardo Pinheiro, Mobility secretary, as the party's candidate for Porto city.

Back to square one in the PS: Eduardo Pinheiro quits as candidate just 24 hours after being picked by his party. According to Público newspaper, he said that "after a carefull reflection" he declined the invitation to be a candidate.

This pick for Porto city was received with fury by the local party, with PS members accusing Costa of forging a secret deal with Rui Moreira. Is José Luís Carneiro, PS deputy secretary general, condemned to be a candidate, even against the wishes of the PS-Porto? We'll see.

José Luís Carneiro declines to be a candidate for Porto city:

https://twitter.com/Publico/status/1403687781872934915

PS: Deputy Secretary General of PS declines candidacy for Porto city hall.

The tension continues around the PS candidacy for the second largest city in the country. After the chaotic pick of Eduardo Pinheiro as candidate, that only lasted 24 hours, one of the possible candidates to the race, José Luís Carneiro, has declined to be a candidate. In a statement to the press, he said that "after a lot of thinking, I reiterated, to the local party, my unavailability to be a candidate." Although he was a strong candidate, the local party didn't want him as he's not from Porto city or has any connection with the city. The local party has to pick a candidate quickly as time is ticking for the elections, in late September it seems, but now, the likeliest candidate, and basically the only one available, is Manuel Pizarro, the party's candidate in 2013 and 2017.

Mr Luís Carneiro seems more poised to be a minister very shortly, however. The media reports that there's immense pressure from the party's base to force a reshuffle of the cabinet before the local elections, and José Luís Carneiro could be a pick for minister, maybe Internal Affairs minister and succeed the very unpopular Eduardo Cabrita.

[Beezer]

Quick question: Is there any official Chega document that talks about their preferred model for autonomy? I've only come across a couple of comments by Ventura but nothing concrete.

[Mike88]

Quick question: Is there any official Chega document that talks about their preferred model for autonomy? I've only come across a couple of comments by Ventura but nothing concrete.

You mean how the party's position on regional autonomies, right? I don't remember him talking about abolishing regional governments, but his party, or what's left of his platform, wants to abolish several regional offices, reduce regional MPs and reduce also the size of regional governments.

Now, CHEGA and Ventura are against the creation of new autonomy regions, the regionalization project that would create 5 new autonomous regions in mainland Portugal. However, this project is very divisive and would have to be put up in a referendum and its outcome is a huge doubt. I myself have big doubts about regionalization.

[Beezer]

Thanks. I've been reading up on Vox, Chega and their respective brands of populism. Since Vox is obviously deeply opposed to regional autonomy, I was just wondering if Chega had a similar attitude, probably based on different concerns though seeing as Portugal doesn't have the same kind of regionalist history that Spain does. I supposed Chega's objections are more about autonomous administrations squandering funds then?

[Mike88]

Thanks. I've been reading up on Vox, Chega and their respective brands of populism. Since Vox is obviously deeply opposed to regional autonomy, I was just wondering if Chega had a similar attitude, probably based on different concerns though seeing as Portugal doesn't have the same kind of regionalist history that Spain does. I supposed Chega's objections are more about autonomous administrations squandering funds then?

Exactly, they believe the Azores and Madeira regional governments are too big, bad managed and they need to be diminished. The current CHEGA support for the PSD led minority government in the Azores, more often than not, has tensions because of the size of the government and the state welfare, as CHEGA accuses the PSD of not doing enough to cut "waste" and of even increasing the state support. However, CHEGA-Azores is a very, very divided party currently as there is a big feud between the 2 MPs which seems to be hurting the party in the islands.

And like I said above, they do not support abolishing the Azores and Madeira regional governments, but in terms of the regionalization, they are totally against. President Marcelo has also doubts about regionalization, while he was PSD leader, in the late 90's, he led the campaign against regionalization and was victorious as voters rejected the project by a 64-36% margin. Both PS and PSD are also deeply divided on the issue of regionalization. Costa wants to hold another referendum on the matter after 2023, but it's still to be seen if it will indeed happen.

And speaking of CHEGA:

Facebook suspends André Ventura' s account for 24 hours:

https://twitter.com/cmjornal/status/1404074498106826752

Facebook suspends André Ventura's account.

Facebook has suspended André Ventura's account for 24 hours because of two complaints regarding posts he wrote on the social media page. One post is about minister Eduardo Cabrita, where he says "If that's how the Third Republic lives, I also think Eduardo Cabrita should be beheaded!", and the second is about a Colonial War veteran, who died in March this year, in which Ventura called the leftwing parties "sissies" for not being present. Ventura has already reacted saying that social media is becoming more and more the "shackles of political correctness" and that only CHEGA is being "persecuted".

[Mike88]

Controversy with IL's St. Anthony fair: Health authorities gave it a negative opinion, as some games in the fair are also creating controversy.

https://twitter.com/observadorpt/status/1404130451950821382

Darts against opponents provoke controversy. IL defends herself: "It was just a joke".

The Liberal Initiative St. Anthony's fair, yesterday, was expected to create controversy, and it did. First, Health authorities gave a negative opinion about the event, saying it was wrong to held it when Lisbon city is forbidding festival fairs. The media criticized the party and IL leader, João Cotrim Figueiredo, was questioned by reporters if there was no hypocrisy in criticizing PCP for the Avante Festival and now doing this. Mr Cotrim Figueiredo rejected any accusation of hypocrisy by saying that the pandemic situation is much more controlled now and that people cannot stay locked in their homes forever. PSD leader, Rui Rio, already trashed IL for their fair, accusing them of doing worse than the PCP, and that in order to defeat this pandemic "it's necessary to have full respect for others and sense of responsibility".

However, some games in the fair are also attracting some controversy. One was a darts game where people could throw darts against the faces of "political opponents" of IL: Costa, Rio, Medina and other members of Costa's cabinet. Nor CDS leader, Francisco Rodrigues dos Santos, or André Ventura where "one of the targets". The other controversial game, was an arrow game in which people had to hit, with an arrow, a manequin with a Che Guevara t-shirt and with the face of minister Pedro Nuno Santos. IL is responding to the criticisms by saying all was a joke and was for people to have some fun.

[Mike88]

2021 Local elections: PS picks Tiago Barbosa Ribeiro as candidate for Porto mayor.

https://twitter.com/ojeconomico/status/1404448309259882497

Tiago Barbosa Ribeiro is a candidate for the PS to Porto city hall.

After months of tensions, back and forwards and a lot of criticisms, the PS has picked Tiago Barbosa Ribeiro as candidate for Porto city. Mr Barbosa Ribeiro, who is the leader of the local PS-Porto, actually said, a few weeks ago, that he was unavailable to be a candidate, but the recent turmoil in the party may have force him to retract his earlier stance. His name will be voted by the local party, tonight, and then sent to the national leadership to make it official. Mr Barbosa Ribeiro is aligned with the leftwing of the PS and close to Pedro Nuno Santos and, therefore, not close to António Costa. Mr Barbosa Ribeiro was also involved in the Tancos air base roberry scandal, after it was revealed he had exchanged text messages with former defense minister, Azeredo Lopes, in which the minister confirmed to him the cover up operation.

With this announcement, Porto city has basically the final list of candidates, however some minor parties may also announce candidacies. Mayor Rui Moreira will announce his candidacy for a 3rd term next Thursday also:

- Rui Moreira (Independent, supported by CDS and IL)
- Tiago Barbosa Ribeiro (PS)
- Vladimiro Feliz (PSD)
- Ilda Figueiredo (CDU)
- Sérgio Aires (BE)
- António Fonseca (CHEGA)
- Diogo Araújo Dantas (PPM)
- André Eira (Volt)

The CHEGA candidate, António Fonseca, is the current parish president of Porto historical center parish and a dissident from Rui Moreira's movement. Overall, this race is basically a forgone conclusion, for the moment. Mayor Rui Moreira, even though involved in a corruption trial that could force him out of office, is the overwhelming favourite and the real battle seems to be who will place second, PS or PSD? But even here, the PS is the favourite as a big chunk of Rui Moreira's electorate is from the PSD.

[Mike88]

Update on the 2021 local elections:

- Worrisome news from Viseu city. The PS candidate for the city, João Azevedo, is in hospital, and in critical condition, because of a heart problem. The latest news was that his condition was becoming worse. Last April, the former PSD mayor and candidate for reelection, Almeida Henriques, died due to complications with Covid-19;

- André Ventura will run in the local elections. Despite saying he wouldn't run in the local elections, Ventura ignored what he said in the recent past, and decided to run for Moura city municipal assembly, in Beja district. Moura gave Ventura one of his strongest showings in the 2021 Presidential elections;

- In Porto city, there's an ongoing war between the PSD and Rui Moreira. The PSD is accusing Moreira of using city hall emails and equipments to promote his reelection bid. The party has already filed at least two complaints to the Electoral Commission. Rui Moreira's campaign already labeled the PSD accusations as ridiculous, and accused the PSD, and it's candidate, of doing the same thing in 2013, while Rui Rio was mayor of Porto;

- In Lisbon city, PAN has chosen writer Manuela Gonzaga as the party's candidate for mayor. Ms Gonzaga, 70 years old, is a PAN member since 2012. Livre will also present a candidate for Lisbon city, but will hold primaries to choose a candidate, in which the party's leader, Rui Tavares, is a candidate;

- In Cascais city, the PS will run in a coalition with PAN and Livre. The PS led coalition will have as candidate the chairman of Estoril-Praia football club, Alexandre Faria. He will face the incumbent PSD/CDS mayor, Carlos Carreiras;

- PSD leader Rui Rio has been in several candidates presentation sessions across the country lately, in Portalegre, Évora and Lisbon, and is pressing the view that the PSD has to have a strong showing the elections. Mr Rio says the electorate needs to punish the government for their recent actions. Indeed, the elections are make or break for Rui Rio's position as leader, however, the mood in the PSD is bad and few believe the party will make substantial gains;

- Also, 9,306,120 voters are registered to vote in the local elections. The number was announced, today, by the government. Overseas voters are barred from voting in local elections;

More updates when available.

[Mike88]

Russiagate: Internal investigation by Lisbon city hall found that organisers of 52 protests had their personal data sent to embassies since 2018.

https://twitter.com/Publico/status/1405852220181131265

Lisbon: Lisbon City Hall sent personal data of demonstrators to embassies in 52 protests

The mayor of Lisbon, Fernando Medina, unveiled, this afternoon, the results of the internal investigation by Lisbon city hall regarding the sharing of personal data by Lisbon to several embassies/foreign governments. Overall, since 2012, 182 protest organisers had their personal date shared with embassies, while since the passing of the 2018 online personal data protection law, 52 were shared with embassies. The results of the investigation were sent to the Data Protection Commission, and Mr Medina announced he has fired the head of the data protection for Lisbon city hall. He adds that this sharing of data were "a mistake" and they are trying to fix it. He admits there is now a "break of trust" between citizens and Lisbon city hall and that it needs to be faced head on. However, he refuses to resign as mayor, despite the demand from the PSD/CDS opposition. Mr Medina is expected to present his reelection campaign in the coming days.

[Mike88]

Interior minister Eduardo Cabrita involved in a deadly accident as his official car runs over a man in a highway:

https://twitter.com/observadorpt/status/1405890814853713927

Car where Minister Eduardo Cabrita was in runs over a person on the A6.

This news is just being reported. The media is reporting, and the Interior ministry also confirms, that minister Eduardo Cabrita's car, in which he was in, ran over a man who has doing road maintenance in the highway between Elvas and Lisbon. The man ultimately died due to the injuries. The police is now investigating the causes of the accident. Mr Eduardo Cabrita was returning from a ceremony in Portalegre city, and has already said he's "very sorry" for what happened and has sent his condolences to the grieving family.

[Mike88]

2021 local elections: Turmoil in Gaia city, PSD candidate quits because of a personal feud with the local PSD leader.

https://twitter.com/expresso/status/1405967568440070151

Scolding in the PSD: António Oliveira gives up his candidacy for the Chamber of Gaia

The situation in the PSD-Gaia reached boiling point, today. For months now, there was a huge personal feud between António Oliveira, Rio's pick for candidate, and Cancela Moura, the PSD-Gaia leader and recently, Rio himself had to mediate a fight between Oliveira and Moura, as Mr Moura was sidelining Mr Oliveira in the compositions of the lists. This time, Mr Oliveira gave up after Cancela Moura didn't budge in his imposition to be either the number 2 on the list for mayor, or head candidate for the Municipal Assembly. António Oliveira communicated his intention to Rio himself in a meeting in Porto city, this afternoon, according to Expresso newspaper.

This is a huge blow for Rui Rio as António Oliveira was a personal pick from Rio and this is another dent in Rio's strategy. Several people in the PSD-Gaia actually warned Mr Oliveira that he wasn't aware in what he was getting in to, because of the toxic state of the party in Gaia. In my opinion, one of the reasons the PSD is failing to win elections in the last few years, is the constant petty infighting and that many PSD members would rather lose elections than to lose their positions within the party.

[Mike88]

2021 local election: Interesting race to follow in Lisbon's Campo de Ourique parish, as António Costa's son is the main candidate.

The son of Prime Minister António Costa, Pedro Costa, is the current President of the parish since 2019, when the former parish president resigned from the office. Costa was the 2nd in the list and thus he became parish president. He will now run for a full term in the fall. He will face the a PSD led coalition candidate, which is still to be announced.

Campo de Ourique is a middle class parish, west from Lisbon downtown, where PS and PSD have a strong presence. In 2017, the sum of PSD+CDS got 36% against the 38% of the PS. The PS controls the parish since 2013.

[Mike88]

António Costa reelected as PS leader with 94% of the votes:

https://twitter.com/tvi24ultimas/status/1406614343987482624

António Costa reelected in the PS with 94% of the votes.

Prime Minister António Costa was reelected as PS leader with 94% of the votes in party's leadership race. His challenger, Daniel Adrião, got 6% of the votes, held during this weekend. However, this result was Costa's worst as PS leader, compared with the 95% in 2016 and 96% in 2018. On the other hand, Mr Adrião result was better than his 2016 and 2018 candidacies. Detailed results are still to be announced.

In a statement after the results were announced, Costa thanked PS members for their trust and pointed that the next battle is the local elections in September, adding that the goal is to win and maintain the biggest number of mayors and councillors. Daniel Adrião reacted to the results saying he defeated the "unanimism" around António Costa, pressing that the party needs to unveiled the full results in the sake of transparency.

[Mike88]

Intercampus poll for CM newspaper/CMTV:

Vote share %:

34.6% PS (-3.3)
22.4% PSD (+0.7)
10.1% CHEGA (+1.8 )
  8.9% BE (+0.6)
  6.4% IL (+2.2)
  6.0% CDU (+0.5)
  5.2% PAN (+0.4)
  3.1% CDS (+0.2)
  0.6% Livre (-0.7)
  2.7% Others/Invalid (-2.4)

Popularity ratings: (in a scale between 0 and 5)

3.1 António Costa (-0.2)
3.0 Catarina Martins (nc)
2.9 André Silva (+0.1)
2.8 Rui Rio (nc)
2.8 João Cotrim Figueiredo (nc)
2.7 Jerónimo de Sousa (+0.1)
2.6 Francisco Rodrigues dos Santos (+0.1)
2.0 André Ventura (nc)

Poll conducted between 8 and 16 June 2021. Polled 608 voters. MoE of 4.00%.

[CumbrianLefty]

António Costa reelected as PS leader with 94% of the votes:

https://twitter.com/tvi24ultimas/status/1406614343987482624

António Costa reelected in the PS with 94% of the votes.

Prime Minister António Costa was reelected as PS leader with 94% of the votes in party's leadership race. His challenger, Daniel Adrião, got 6% of the votes, held during this weekend. However, this result was Costa's worst as PS leader, compared with the 95% in 2016 and 96% in 2018. On the other hand, Mr Adrião result was better than his 2016 and 2018 candidacies. Detailed results are still to be announced.

In a statement after the results were announced, Costa thanked PS members for their trust and pointed that the next battle is the local elections in September, adding that the goal is to win and maintain the biggest number of mayors and councillors. Daniel Adrião reacted to the results saying he defeated the "unanimism" around António Costa, pressing that the party needs to unveiled the full results in the sake of transparency.

96% in 2016, 95% in 2018, 94% now.....

At this rate he could be in some difficulty when he is about 120

[Mike88]

96% in 2016, 95% in 2018, 94% now.....

At this rate he could be in some difficulty when he is about 120

Ahahah xD. Nonetheless, it's a bit annoying the PS doesn't reveal the detailed results. Also, this could be Costa's last leadership campaign, as there's the rumour that he will not run again in 2023. I have my doubts about that, but I think it will be a decision that will depend on the mood of the country by that time.

[Mike88]

Ongoing turmoil in PSD-Gaia: Local party accuses António Oliveira of being a "little dictator" and a "no-show".

https://twitter.com/observadorpt/status/1406932533720272901

PSD local party criticizes António Oliveira: “Giving up now was the best thing he could have done to Gaia”

The withdraw of António Oliveira as PSD candidate in Gaia city, 305,000 inhabitants, is still rocking the PSD. After Mr Oliveira's announcement, he released an open letter to the media accusing the local PSD-Gaia of shameful tactics that "are the worst there is in the human species". He also said that this wasn't a withdraw but a "question of hygiene". He nonetheless thanked Rui Rio for the invitation, but added that Rio was also a victim in all of this. The PSD-Gaia is furious and in a press conference this morning, where CDS and PPM were also present, trashed Mr Oliveira and rebuffed every accusation he did against the PSD. The local party leader, Cancela Moura, which was having a feud with Oliveira, accused Mr Oliveira of not showing up to party meetings, of not expressing a single idea for the city and the in the only time he met with the PSD, Mr Oliveira insulted many PSD members. They also says he was a "casting error". PSD leader Rui Rio isn't reacting to this controversy as it was also revealed that Mr Oliveira didn't actually told Rio he was quitting. In fact, it seems that in the meeting between Rio and Oliveira nothing was decided and Mr Oliveira was to think about what to do. Rio, according to the press, is deeply upset. The local PSD-Gaia accused also Mr Oliveira of not treating Rio with respect and of having no character.

The party will now pick a new candidate in the next few weeks, but admit this will have electoral consequences in Gaia city. At the same time, the media is also reporting that Mr Oliveira's sons may be involved in a hit and run incident, as a revenge act against two young men who are suspected of breaking in to a home owned by Mr Oliveira.

[Mike88]

Government under fire for not signing the letter on LGBT rights in Hungary:

https://twitter.com/RTPNoticias/status/1407640826134646784

Portugal absent from European condemnation of Hungary on sexual rights and freedom of expression - RTP Notícias

The government is being heavily criticized for not joining or signing an European letter that condemns the attacks on LGBT rights and freedom of expression in Hungary. From left to right, parties are criticizing the government, from the Liberals (IL) who accuse Costa's government of having no credibility and of having a "proximity" to the Hungarian government, to BE who trashes the government by saying that there "cannot be any neutrality regarding human rights". The government explanation is that because Portugal is now in the European Council Presidency, the country needs to be neutral and be a mediator. The Socialist party youth, JS, is also criticizing the government. Others accuse the government of ending Portugal's presidency in the worst possible way, but the foreign minister, Santos Silva, says the whole matter is a "mistaken assessment". 13 EU countries signed this letter condemning Hungary.

[Mike88]

This long never ending feud continues:

Ryanair chairman calls Pinocchio to minister Pedro Nuno Santos:

https://twitter.com/ECO_PT/status/1407663706402603010

Ryanair boss calls Pinocchio to Pedro Nuno Santos and refuses trade war

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary accuses the Portuguese government of lying about the low cost airline. And the accusation couldn't be more graphic: the executive of the British company presented a photomontage in which the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, Pedro Nuno Santos, appears with the nose of Pinocchio, the child character whose nose grows every time he lack of truth.

“Ryanair is loved by the Portuguese, but it is not being treated well by minister Pedro Nuno Santos, who lies. Politicians lie all the time”, he accused, at a press conference this Wednesday in Lisbon. O’Leary responded to the minister's criticism that he had launched a “trade war” when he filed a lawsuit against State aid to TAP.
(...)

[Mike88]

Russigate: Media is revealing the Lisbon city hall audit that shows that Russia was informed 27 times of protests  and that Medina's support office was aware of it.

https://twitter.com/TSFRadio/status/1407824858407264261

Medina's support office knew in 2018 that data was sent to embassies

The media is reporting, this morning, the results of the Lisbon city hall audit regarding the "Russiagate" controversy. The audit was presented last Friday but its results weren't released and Fernando Medina's press conference was very criticized by the media as the mayor didn't answer a lot of questions. Now, the media reveals that Russia was informed 27 times about protests and other countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq were also informed about protests in Lisbon. The audit also says that Medina's support office, an informal city hall body that supports the mayor, was aware of this practices. The audit says this "nuance" could clear mayor Medina of any responsibility but the audit doesn't say who is responsible for all this controversy, creating doubts of how Lisbon city hall is managed.

At the same time, Medina will go to Parliament, this afternoon, to respond to question from MPs about this controversy at the request of the PSD. The European Parliament also sent a letter to Lisbon city hall demanding answers as they suspect the city hall violated European law.

[Mike88]

Gaffes of Speaker Ferro Rodrigues become viral:

Speaker Ferro Rodrigues hasn't had an easy 48 hours. In the last two days, Speaker Rodrigues has committed two gaffes that are making headlines. The first was Wednesday night, as he left the stadium, in Budapest, after watching the Portugal vs France Euro 2020 match. Quite euphoric about the final result of the match, the Speaker committed a gaffe:

I hope the Portuguese go massively to the south of Spain and that they can support a great victory for Portugal in the round of 16 of this European Championship

This gaffe has become viral for almost every reason. It was made just hours before the government imposed tougher measures in the Lisbon metro area to stop the spread of the Delta variant, and Andalusia is currently one of the worst areas in Spain in terms of infections. But, today, Ferro Rodrigues did it again. While closing the Parliament session, the Speaker forgot to turn off his mic and he was caught trashing the BE and PCP MPs:

These guys from Bloco and PC have all left. They're all crazy.

This gaffe was made as the new Armed Forces reform was being voted and approved. PS, PSD and CDS voted in favour, while the other parties, BE, PCP, PAN, PEV, IL and CHEGA, voted against, but PCP and BE MPs left the floor just after the vote.