Chega asks government to declare high alert due to fires

Chegi’s leader asked the government on Tuesday to declare a high alert for rural fires, stressing that this would allow more funds to be mobilized and prevent the fires from spreading at a “critical time”.

“We are addressing today [esta terça-feira] the Minister of the Interior to declare a state of emergency because, legally speaking, this allows more people and more funds to be mobilized (…) to fight the flames,” Andre Ventura said in statements to reporters after visiting the Camarate Volunteer Firefighters in Loures .

Leader Chegi said that Portugal is currently “at a crucial juncture” regarding the fight against the fires, stressing that if the fires “win at this time, it will prevent them from spreading and getting stronger.”

“Therefore, the declaration of an emergency is urgent, it is a necessity. On behalf of Chega, I urge the minister to do this quickly and quickly so that this can be quickly resolved, ”he said.

André Ventura said that “the temperature is rising, the humidity is very low and the wind is blowing”, so “a broth is being formed that is perfect for fire situations”, such as in Pedrogao in 2017.

Leader Chegi also referred to a Portuguese League of Firefighters (LBP) publication released on Monday that criticized the “lack of air resources” at dawn, saying it was regrettable that Portugal “has the means to cede countries and theaters of war to others” but not for firefighting.

In terms of investment in equipment, Ventura accused PS of saying every year that “the biggest investment in anything” is made, but later, in specific cases, such as the case of Camarate volunteer firefighters, these “government investments remain non-existent. or reduced.”

“We cannot want effective fire fighting without effective means to do so,” he said.

In these statements to reporters, Chegi’s leader also referred to a letter delivered on Tuesday by the LBP to the prime minister, demanding the resignation of the president of the Integrated Rural Fire Management Agency (AGIF).

We are talking about the statements of the President of AGIF in Parliament in July, in which he questioned the fact that “fire brigades receive a burnt area”, given the “perverse purpose”.

For Andre Ventura, these statements are “criminal” and require “political consequences”.

“There should be political repercussions for whoever said this, and I think it’s hard for anyone to launch a nefarious attack in this way on corporations and the men and women fighting fires,” he said.

Thiago Oliveira’s statements are “very serious and I hope that the Prime Minister and the Minister will not miss this clearly: (…) I think that an apology and resignation are the only solutions in this situation,” he added.

Leader Chegi urged the prime minister to “read carefully” the LBP letter and “put a hand on your conscience, see the suffering, despair and disappointment that many men and women fighting fires experience.”

On Monday, the Interior Minister said that “for the time being” the state of high alert in connection with rural fires would not be declared, taking into account the reaction of the device to combat and weather conditions.