The presidents of parish councils in the historic center of Porto and Ramalda, the second largest parish in the city, called this Monday for increased policing on the streets and in police stations.
During the period dedicated to the participation of the parishes in the session of the Municipal Assembly, the President of the Union of Parishes of the Historic Center, Nuno Cruz, emphasized the need for the presence of “more agents” on the streets of the city center.
“We urgently need to see police on our streets,” Nuno Cruz said, calling on the new interior minister to pay more attention to the issue.
“The police should be on the streets because it is a deterrent (…) We don’t want our feelings of insecurity to become news abroad,” he added, defending the need for the government to focus on solving the problem.
Ramalde Parish Council President Patricia Rapasote also reported on insecurity issues that have emerged in the city’s second largest parish, Porto.
“We are seeing more and more robberies,” he said, calling on the government to strengthen police protection.
Patricia Rapasote also expressed hope that Ramalde will be able to integrate the third phase of the video surveillance system.
In May, the mayors of Porto and Lisbon advocated the need to strengthen PSP and municipal police personnel in the two cities, saying their visibility had declined.
In Porto there are currently 200 officers assigned to the municipal police, but their effective strength should be 300.
“We know that the previous Minister of the Interior said that there would be increased staffing, but we do not know the schedule yet and we are waiting for this government to tell us what the possible schedule is,” the mayor said. Porto, Rui Moreira.