Jorge Seguro Sanches has “had enough” of “accumulation of situations”
As parliamentary inquiries go, the one into management decisions at flagship airline TAP has seen an “accumulation of unacceptable situations” that saw its president Jorge Seguro Sanches give MPs a dressing down yesterday, and leave the room.
Now, it seems, he has decided to quit his position altogether.
Says SIC Noticias, “the decision has been taken, it’s just a question of organising timings with the Speaker of the Republican Assembly (see update below).
“At stake is an accumulation of situations that Seguro Sanches considers unacceptable. From pressure from opposition parties and the PS itself to change the agenda of the work, to the alleged attempt by the opposition to delay the calendar and conclusion of the inquiry.
“The commission was supposed to end on May 23, but that date has already been definitively compromised.
“Jorge Seguro Sanches has made it known that he does not accept attacks on his honour and also recalls that, despite the political war, TAP is a public company of great value, which must be protected”.
The situation came to a head after Seguro Sanches was challenged about the time given for MPs to question people brought in to give evidence. He referred to the challenge as “inelegant” and one that prompted him to “question” whether he still had “the best conditions” to fulfill his mandate.
Having said that, he left the room – and seems to have made up his mind since.
Centre right PSD and right wing party CHEGA have accused PS Socialists of putting obstacles in the way of the inquiry. It is an inquiry that the ruling party is not enjoying; indeed Expresso stressed last week the PS wants to avoid questions from opposition MPs moving into “other areas”.
CHEGA president André Ventura has gone so far as to call for an inquiry into what the pressures were that led Seguro Sanches to throw in the sponge, telling journalists: “Seguro Sanches’ departure shows how the PS is trying to capture and hijack the commission of inquiry.”
As all this goes on, President Marcelo has been insisting that Portugal “is very stable politically” in spite of all the ructions.
Last week, Maderia’s regional president predicted “there is a lot more to be discovered” in the TAP inquiry, if, of course, it is able to reach its conclusion.
UPDATE: António Lacerda Sales– the former secretary of State for Health who frequently addressed the nation in Covid press bulletins through the pandemic – is to take over as president of the commission of inquiry.
