Marcelo received the citizens in the official office, where he told the history of the Belem Palace.

This Thursday, the President of the Republic received dozens of citizens in the official office of the Palacio de Belem, where he told the history of the place, opened to the population in honor of the 50th anniversary of April 25, but refused to answer questions from journalists.

This afternoon, hundreds of citizens visited the Palacio de Belem, open to the public from 11:00 to 18:00 as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations on April 25.

Around 4:20 p.m., Marcelo Rebelo de Souza opened the doors to his official office, where he sat at his desk collecting and signing documents before exchanging brief words with the dozens of citizens who filled the room.

The head of state told the history of the rooms and gardens of the Belem Palace, also pointing out various pieces of furniture in the office, including the sofa on which he usually receives guests in audiences and where, according to him, heads of state such as Xi Jinping sat , Barack Obama or Vladimir Putin.

To his left, he showed the table where the President of the Republic usually meets weekly with the Prime Minister, emphasizing that before the former head of state Aníbal Cavaco Silva, these meetings took place on the sofa.

“It was President Cavaco’s idea. [que as reuniões passassem para a mesa] for a very simple reason: when he was Prime Minister, he was President Mario Soares, but he brought huge dossiers and either placed them [afastados] on a table or on your lap, which was not very functional. And when he arrived, he ordered this table to be placed here,” he said.

In these brief words that he exchanged with citizens, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa did not want to respond to journalists, noting that today he made a 26-minute speech at the ceremonial meeting of April 25 in parliament, which, according to him, was his longest speech in Revolution day.

However, when asked if he would admit to participating in the people’s parade on Avenida da Liberdade next year, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa replied that this year it would be “impossible” due to the schedule he has with the heads of state. Portuguese-speaking countries of Africa (PALOP).

“I have one year left, which is next year,” he said.

When asked if he planned to walk along Avenida da Liberdade next year, he replied: “I don’t know. First of all, I don’t know if I’m alive. healthy and thirdly, what is my schedule.”

“This year was supposed to be special because of decolonization, so it was more open and more inclusive than usual. I don’t know what next year will be like,” he said.

After this, the President of the Republic asked several children who were in the room to come to his table, take pictures and take several “selfies” with the people present in the room.