The labour minister told parliament on Wednesday that the new administration of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa had found irregularities in Ana Jorge’s management and that a restructuring plan would be presented to the trusteeship next week.
At a parliamentary hearing, the minister said that an investigation by the new management team, led by the new provider Paulo Duarte de Souza, which is already aware of the violations discovered, would be made public in due course.
“This group has already discovered something we didn’t know existed. A number of irregularities in the sale of the Red Cross hospital, in response to interested parties,” a government official told deputies.
He also said there were delays in procurement processes such as food purchases, that hospital buildings had floors that were not functioning and that the Monsanto building, built more than two years ago and designed to have 60 beds, was “completely unoccupied”. He also spoke of the lack of a strategic plan for the play area and facilities that were not generating any income.
“This situation has been discovered and has already been reported to us, and it says a lot about the management during the existence of the provider Ana Jorge,” said Maria do Rosario Palma Ramalho.
Regarding Ana Jorge’s departure, the minister refused to carry out a purge.
“I did not carry out any political reforms or dismissals. There is no political reform, there are dismissals for financial and managerial reasons,” he said, believing that new elements to which he already had access confirm that he was right in this decision.
Next week, the minister said, the new management team of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa will present her with a restructuring plan.
The SCML administration was dismissed on April 29, with Minister Maria do Rosario Ramalho justifying the decision to dismiss Ana Jorge and her team with “total inaction” given the institution’s financial situation and the lack of a restructuring plan that could reverse it, and also accused the dissolved Council of benefiting from salary increases.
In May, Paulo Duarte Sousa took over as the new supplier to Santa Casa, appointed by Minister Rosario Palma Ramalho, replacing Ana Jorge.
The change in leadership at Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa comes at a time of great upheaval and instability at the institution: provider Ana Jorge was fired before she had completed a year at the helm of the organisation, accused by the current government of “serious negligence” that affected the management of Santa Casa. Ana Jorge said she felt bad for her and rejected accusations of “self-interest”.
Elected by the previous government (PS), Ana Jorge inherited an institution in serious financial difficulties after years of the pandemic and the process of internationalization of social games carried out by the management of the provider Edmundo Martinho, which could have led to losses of around 50 million euros.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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