Costa was unaware of the backstory and is awaiting clarification on TAP’s compensation to Alexandra Reis. “Naturally, I asked for clarification from the ministers responsible for TAP who are evaluating this issue,” he said.

On Tuesday, the prime minister told Lusa he had “absolutely no background” and asked for clarification regarding the compensation awarded by TAP to Secretary of State Alexandra Reis, pending “legal qualification” of the facts.

In response to written questions from the Lusa agency, António Costa said he had “absolutely no background” on the situation and sought clarification from finance ministers Fernando Medina and infrastructure and housing ministers Pedro Nuno Santos.

“Naturally, I asked for clarification from the ministers responsible for TAP who are evaluating this issue,” he said.

Asked about Alexandra Reis’s statements made on Monday to Luce, the Prime Minister said: “As for the Minister of Finance, I recorded that she was ready to return any amount that was not due to her, and that she received on terms agreed between lawyers “.

When asked whether the minister remains trustworthy, the head of government replied that “otherwise” he is waiting for “full clarification of the facts and their legal qualifications.”

Secretary of the Treasury Alexandra Reis received a €500,000 compensation for stepping down early as chief executive of a Portuguese airline when she still had two years to serve. A few months later, the government appointed her chairman of the Navegação Aérea de Portugal (NAV).

The case, reported last Saturday by Correio da Manhã, was criticized by all opposition.

The Ministers of Finance and Infrastructure and Housing requested from the administration of the TAR “information on the legal basis of the agreement” signed with Alexandra Reis, including the compensation paid.

In a written statement sent to Lusa’s agency, Alexandra Reis said on Monday she never accepted and that she would refund “immediately” if she was paid any amount she felt was not in line with “strict law”. about her departure from TAP.

The minister also said that the agreement to leave “as an administrator of companies in the TAP universe” and the cancellation of her “employment contract with TAP SA, requested by the company, as well as its public communication, have been agreed between legal teams from both parties, authorized to ensure the implementation of best practices and strict observance of all legal regulations.

However, in information sent at the time to the Portuguese Securities Market Commission, TAP announced that Alexandra Reis had resigned from her position.

On Tuesday, President of the Republic Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said that “everything needs to be cleared up” in the agreement signed between TAP and Secretary of State Alexandra Reis in order to reverse or not reverse the consequences in a second phase.

“We need to start from the very beginning, that is, from the clarification, and then, taking into account the clarification, then the consequences of what was clarified or not will be removed,” he said.