BE calls for left movement after ‘big goal’ fails

This Saturday, BE called for “perseverance and unity” on the left, although he reserved some criticism of the PS general secretary, admitting that he had failed to achieve his “main goal” of creating a majority of the left in the legislative elections on March 10 .

The blocs’ positions are set out in a resolution approved this Saturday by the party’s National Council, the highest body between congresses, whose conclusions were presented by coordinator Mariana Mortagua at a press conference in Lisbon.

The text states that the “response of the left,” given the election scenario last Sunday, must be one of “perseverance, unity, struggle and alternative.”

Mariana Mortagua told reporters that “in this scenario of a shift to the right, BE’s commitment lies in a determined, courageous and tireless opposition to right-wing governance.”

“A dialogical force that strives and wants to continue the search for rapprochement with the left and environmental parties,” he stressed, recalling that the party has requested meetings with the PS, PCP, Livre and PAN, which will take place “in the coming days.”

“We plan and want these to be meetings for an open dialogue about the elections and possible rapprochements in the opposition camp, as well as for a big mobilization so that we can have April 25 and a historic demonstration with all the people behind them showing their concerns and rejection extreme right,” he stressed.

However, the BE coordinator did not fail to criticize the leadership of the absolute majority of the PS, which she accused of “turning the country to the right,” as well as Socialist Secretary General Pedro Nuno Santos.

“During the election campaign, the PS did not want to distance itself from the absolute majority and its leadership. Pedro Nuno Santos failed to distance himself. On the contrary, he decided to confirm this legacy, and this decision of the PS contributed to the loss of confidence from any alternative project in which a right-wing government could exist,” he said.

Mariana Mortagua admitted that the Bloc, which retained parliamentary representation of five deputies after the legislative elections on the 10th, “has not fulfilled its main task – to establish an alternative to the left in Portugal.”

Regarding the proposal to reject the government’s Democratic Alliance program (PSD/CDS/PPM) already announced by the PCP, the leader insisted that “as a matter of prudence” BE does not announce positions on texts with which it is not familiar. .

The resolution approved this Saturday by the National Council states that “during the weeks of the election campaign and the week after the elections, applications for membership in the Bloc were received in an unprecedented number in the history of the party – more than 1,500 in less than a month.”

Mariana Mortagua was also asked about the profits of Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD), which reached a record amount of 1.291 million euros in 2023, and regretted that they were due to higher interest rates on housing loans.

“The most impressive thing is that CGD represents a profit of more than a billion euros, directly due to the efforts of so many people with a mortgage who became poor day after day because they could no longer pay off that loan. credit,” he criticized.

The bloc leader recalled that during the election campaign the party presented “strong proposals to tax these profits so that the CGD could intervene in the housing lending market by giving up part of these profits.”

The right’s proposal for these profits, he added, “is tax cuts, IRC.”

“CGD has the potential to reduce the ‘spread’ charged to bank customers and thereby drag down the entire market by reducing home loan provision. DO fight hard for this proposal on the campaign trail, we are not going to give it up. This is a fair proposal that could bring immediate relief to families. We will be here to fight for it in parliament,” he assured.

In Sunday’s elections, the BE failed to break away from the right and win back deputies in Aveiro, Braga, Santarem or Faro, despite increasing its vote by some 30,000 votes and retaining the same five mandates, establishing itself as a fifth political force.

The Democratic Alliance with 29.49% received 79 deputies against the PS’s 77 (28.66%), followed by Chega with 48 elected (18.06%).

Four MPs are yet to be investigated for emigration, which will not happen until March 20. Only after this date and after hearing the parties represented in Parliament, the President of the Republic will appoint a new Prime Minister.