Broke in parliament
New crisis stove Portugal: Family company falls government
In Portugal, the world seemed to be largely fine until a few weeks ago. But suddenly Europe has another crisis stove there – one that also affects German interests.
The opaque business of a company of the family of Prime Minister Luís Montenegro brought down the conservative minority government in Portugal. In the past few weeks, the head of government was increasingly driven into the corner of the opposition, which accuses him of taking advantage and a conflict of interest – until the 52 -year -old asked the question of trust in Parliament in Lisbon and suffered a devastating defeat in the vote: 144 to 88 votes, the voting result in the “Assembléia da República”.
The popular holiday country is therefore heading for an early choice of parliament in May. President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa could now commission another politician of the Democratic Alliance (AD) or opposition leader Pedro Santos from the Socialist Party (PS) to form a new government. However, it is likely that he will call for elections for May 11th or 18.
The head of state, which had already canceled a visit to Estonia because of the crisis this week, did not lose time and ordered the party leader to consult today. On Thursday, he wants to advise himself with the State Council – a body that has existed in Portugal since 1845, which advises the president in times of crisis and belongs to the current and former mandate bearer and other personalities.
Will the right -wing populists benefit?
Rebelo’s decision is expected on Friday at the latest. But no matter how it turns out – Portugal’s future is uncertain. Many fear a strengthening of the right -wing populists of Chega, who are already forming the third force behind AD (80 seats) and PS (78) with 49 MPs. Chega boss André Ventura spoke of a “theater” in the heated debate. Columnist Manuel Fonseca had already prophesied before the vote in “Correio da Manhã”: “Today Chega wins.” Commentators later commented similarly in the CNN Portugal broadcaster.
Europe comes anything but located. But especially in Germany, some are likely to look at the country with 10.5 million inhabitants. Not only because Montenegro, which had only been in office for just under a year, was considered a reliable partner in Brussels. The executive government has limited powers. Many projects are put on ice, including the privatization of the airline TAP, in which Lufthansa is also interested.
Everything seemed okay in Portugal until recently
The crisis came as a surprise. Even after the change of government from spring 2024, the former EU debt resident recorded good growth rates and historically low unemployment with continued strict spending discipline. But finally the events overturned.
The opposition accuses Montenegro. The advisory and real estate company Spinumviva, founded by the trained lawyer in 2021, is said to have benefited from the position of the prime minister in order to sign contracts with private companies. Montenegro denies all irregularity. The company now only belongs to its sons Hugo and Diogo. However, he did not reveal any further information about the customers.
As part of the affair, Montenegro survived two no confidence. However, since the opposition still did not give up its plans for an investigation commission, he asked himself to the question of trust. The new election is a “necessary evil”. “Two months of instability are better than a year and a half of slow decay,” emphasized the now excellent head of government.
The head of government did not want a grueling investigation
According to observers, Montenegro accepts the new election because he wanted to prevent a grueling investigation – and because his alliance AD can even hope for a better result than in March 2024. In any case, the overthrown did not throw the towel and announced that he would run again. However, quite a few observers doubt that the comeback will succeed. “Público” columnist Pedro Adão e Silva accuses Montenegro and also Santos for AD and PS “and also high-risk poker game for the Portuguese democracy”.
The third party would be the new parliamentary choice within a good three years. The last one existed on March 10, 2024, after the then socialist Prime Minister António Costa had resigned due to corruption investigations against him and other government members. According to the current status, Costa has not been guilty. The 63-year-old is now President of the European Council.
dpa
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
