A parliamentary commission of inquiry into the Zolgensma twins case will begin work this Wednesday at 2:30 pm to examine the legality and conduct of political leaders allegedly involved in the treatment of the two children.
The 17-member commission will be headed by Chega, the pro-party, and will have four months to complete its work.
The party has not yet indicated which of the deputies will become chairman of the investigative commission.
SDP and PS will assume the responsibilities of vice presidents. The parliamentarians were distributed as follows: four deputies from the SDP, four deputies from the PS, three deputies from Chega and one deputy from other political forces, including the PAN.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic will inaugurate the members of the parliamentary commission of inquiry in the afternoon.
This investigation was initiated by Chega, who in early April launched an initiative, signed by 50 MPs, for parliament to create a mandatory commission of inquiry.
The purpose of this empowered commission is to “investigate, independently of the political decision-makers involved, all responsibilities for the provision of medical care to two Portuguese-Brazilian children treated with the drug Zolgensma (one of the most expensive in the world). ), as well as in obtaining citizenship”, as well as “identifying possible violations committed throughout the process”, “calculating the costs of the state treasury” and “investigating the existence of other similar cases in the recent past”.
The commission of inquiry will take office just days before campaigning begins for the European elections on June 9. Although plenary sessions of the Assembly of the Republic will cease during the two weeks of the campaign, parliamentary committees, subcommittees and working groups will continue to meet.
Chega has already admitted that he asked for clarification from the President of the Republic, who, according to the Legal Regime of Parliamentary Inquiries, “has the right, if he wishes, to give evidence before the parliamentary commission of inquiry, exercising in this case, if they so wish, the prerogative to do so in writing “
We are talking about two twins living in Brazil who received Portuguese citizenship and received in Portugal in 2020 the drug Zolgensma with a total value of four million euros (two million euros per person) to combat the spread of spinal muscular atrophy. , a neurodegenerative disease.
The treatment was received at the Santa Maria Hospital in Lisbon after former Secretary of State António Lacerda Sales met with Nuno Rebelo de Sousa (son of the President of the Republic) on 7 November 2019.
On December 4 last year, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, confirmed that his son Nuno Rebelo de Sousa contacted him by email in 2019.
Most recently, the head of state refused to comment on this initiative by Chegi, citing the results of the European elections.
On April 23, at a dinner with foreign media, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza said his son “probably screwed up by not saying anything—by not telling his father anything.”
The case was published by TVI last November and is still being investigated by the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGR).
The Inspectorate General of Medical Activities (IGAS) has already concluded that these children’s access to neuropediatric consultations was unlawful.
An internal audit of Santa Maria Hospital concluded that the state Department of Health’s initial hospital appointment was the only exception to compliance in this case.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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