Former Secretary of State for Infrastructure, Transport and Communications Sergio Monteiro, from the government led by Passos Coelho, will be heard this Thursday in a commission of inquiry by TAP, as he was one of the participants in the company’s privatization in 2015.
Sergio Monteiro joined the PSD/CDS-PP government led by Pedro Passos Coelho in 2011, taking over the administration of infrastructure, transport and communications, and participated in a privatization package that included the sale of 61% of TAP’s capital to Atlantic Gateway, from David Neeleman and Humberto Pedrosa, as well as 21.35% EDP for China Three Gorges and 40% REN for State Grid of China and Oman Oil.
After leaving the government in 2015, Sergio Monteiro joined Banco de Portugal, taking part in the sale of Novo Banco.
The former leader was in Parliament at the end of March to clarify the privatization of TAP at the request of the PS in the Parliamentary Committee on Economy, Public Works, Planning and Housing.
At the time, Sérgio Monteiro defended that a public injection into TAP would always mean “investing money, cutting wages and worsening living conditions” and that it was therefore “extremely important to privatize” the airline.
The former Secretary of State also pointed out that the TAP privatization process was carried out in accordance with the framework law, which has its own rules and framework, namely the need for prior independent assessments.
For Sergio Monteiro, the practical result of the privatization process was that a company of “strategic importance” became viable, improving Parpública’s accounts by 692 million euros.
The former ruler also believed that the renovation business in Brazil was never a “strategic asset” for the company, but was a “money drain”.
“We have never said that servicing Brazil is a strategic asset. This was justified as the only way to increase the volume of operations in Brazil, and I believe that this is not the case,” Sergio Monteiro said in response. to the deputies.
The former secretary of state said he twice directed TAP’s board of directors to sell the company.
Sergio Monteiro also said that for this business, all scenarios were also considered, including closure, with management deciding “not to nationalize this hole.”
In 2022, TAP maintenance and service in Brazil was permanently closed after accumulating losses of around €600 million over 13 years.
More than 380 people worked at the enterprise.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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