Marcelo claims he hasn’t spoken to Oumaro Sissoko since he was in Bissau

Portuguese head of state Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said in response to Lusa that he had not met or spoken with Guinean President Humaro Sissoko Embalo since he was in Bissau in mid-November.

This information was sent on Tuesday to the Lusa agency in response to a request from the President of the Republic to comment on the situation in Guinea-Bissau and statements by the President of the Guinean Parliament, Domingos Simões Pereira, in which he is targeted.

“The President of the Republic has not met or spoken with the President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, Humaro Sissoko Embalo, since his visit to Guinea-Bissau on November 16, 2023. Like the government, he also did not speak with the President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, Oumaro Sissoko Embalo. commented on the situation in Guinea-Bissau,” was the response sent to Lusa from the press service of the President of the Republic.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was in Bissau from 15 to 16 November with Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa, taking part in the official celebration of the 50th anniversary of Guinea-Bissau’s independence.

In an interview published today with Lusa, the President of the National People’s Assembly of Guinea-Bissau, Domingos Simões Pereira, accused the Portuguese authorities of allowing themselves to be used by the head of state of Guinea, Humaro Sissoko Embalo, “instead of promoting stability, building democratic institutions.”

“The Portuguese authorities hear this reference and do not set themselves the task of condemning it and distancing themselves from this reality, they become complicit in what is happening at the moment,” said Domingos Simões Pereira, chairman of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea. and Cape Town Verde (PAIGC), which leads the coalition in the government of Guinea-Bissau.

According to Simões Pereira, Humaro Sissoko Embalo referred to an alleged conversation with Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa regarding his decision to dissolve the Guinean parliament under the pretext of an alleged coup attempt.

For the President of the Guinean Parliament and PAIGC, the presence of Portuguese authorities in Guinea-Bissau “is a sign of approval of the actions of the entities that have received these powers.” “I cannot allow that, living in this situation, which is already perceived as chronic in terms of instability, Portugal, instead of contributing to the strengthening of stability, the construction of democratic institutions, allows itself to be used for these kinds of references that really drag us down.” , he criticized.

Guinea-Bissau is experiencing a situation of tension and instability following the arrest on November 30 of the Minister of Economy and Finance, Suleiman Seidi, and the Minister of Finance, António Monteiro, both directors of PAIGC, as part of a process related to payments to entrepreneurs.

Events came to a head when members of the National Guard gathered to pick up the two leaders from the judicial police cells, after which clashes broke out between these paramilitary forces and members of the Presidential Palace Battalion.

PAIGC leads the PAI-Terra Ranca coalition in government along with the Social Renewal Party (PRS), the Workers’ Party of Guinea (PTG) and five other smaller political formations. This coalition won the legislative elections on June 4 this year and elected 54 of the 102 deputies.

The Movement for a Democratic Alternative (Madem G15), which supports the President of the Republic and leads the opposition in Guinea-Bissau, regarded the military clashes as an attempted coup.

On Monday, after a meeting of the Council of State, President Oumaro Sissoko Embalo announced the decision to dissolve parliament.

The President of Parliament called the decision a constitutional coup, given that under the terms of the Guinean Constitution, the National People’s Assembly cannot be dissolved within 12 months of its election.