The head of the Madeira government, Social Democrat Miguel Albuquerque, said today that he is ready to go to new early elections if the executive’s program fails, rejecting his replacement in the post.
“It is good to know that PSD/Madeira and I are prepared without fear for any scenario, including early elections if necessary,” said the Madeira leader in the Legislative Assembly of Funchal.
Speaking at the opening of the debate on the XV Program of the Regional Government, which continues until Thursday, the day when a vote of confidence will be passed on it, Albuquerque allowed for the scenario of a new electoral law, given that PS, JPP and Chega, which together have an absolute majority of votes (24 deputies of 47) announced that they would vote against the proposal.
According to the chief executive of Madeira, this is possible “if the blockade of government actions continues to the detriment of the basic interests of the region.”
Miguel Albuquerque stressed that PSD/Madeira “will not and cannot accept any government decision for Madeira that is not based on the sacred principle of the legitimacy of a democratic and popular vote, including the vote of the Chief Executive.”
In his opinion, the people of Madeira do not accept “any behind-the-scenes decision that does not involve democratic elections of the president” of the regional government.
The SDP, he stressed, “unconditionally won the elections” on May 26, and the head of the list “basically voted for the head of government,” while there was a “clear rejection of the socialist alternative offered to voters.”
Therefore, he argued that “the construction of any government or political decision of governability that does not take into account the legitimacy of the electoral law, that is, the will of the people of Madeira and Porto Santens, expressed in elections, is naturally unacceptable and illegitimate.” .
The SDP elected 19 deputies last month and has five terms left before achieving an absolute majority. The PS elected 11 parliamentarians, the AKP nine, Chegu four and SDS-NP two, while IL and PAN received one deputy each.
After the vote, the PSD signed a parliamentary agreement with the Christian Democrats, but still lacked an absolute majority.
The PS and JPP, which have a total of 20 deputies, announced an agreement to try to remove the PSD from power, but the representative of the republic in the archipelago, Ireneu Barreto, eventually nominated Albuquerque as president.
At the time, a spokesman said that “the solution presented by the party with the most votes, the SDP, which has a parliamentary protection agreement with the SDS and in principle the non-hostility of Chegi, PAN and IL, will have all the advantages.” conditions for his program to be approved by the Legislative Assembly.”
During today’s debate, the island’s chief executive criticized what he called the “real boa constrictors or bear hug” that Juntos Pelo Povo (JPP) was subjected to in reaching an agreement with the PS, “contrary to everything that was said in the election ballot.” campaign, in the purported construction of an alternative which, in the end, was no alternative at all.”
The Social Democrat confirmed that the people of Madeira voted for him as a candidate for the presidency of the regional government.
“I was the one who had no fear and was not afraid to submit to the sovereign decision of the voters in a democratic election. It was I, faced with a list of errors and slander that were strategically thrown at me, who did not hesitate a second to submit to the will of the people of Madeira,” he insisted.
In a parliamentary regime, when party and personal interests prevail over the interests of public affairs, he added, “there is always instability, deadlock, even greater ungovernability, as well as economic and social regression.”
In his opinion, given Madeira’s economic growth, “there is no point in changing course and, above all, changing for the worse.”
Therefore, he stressed, the rejection of the government program “represents a political act without compelling reasons, aimed at creating a dead end for everyone and provoking a political crisis that does not allow the government to come to power.”
Stressing that the proposal includes several proposals from other parties, Albuquerque warned of “harmful consequences for all economic and social sectors of the region” if the document is not approved.
The next major budget debate for 2024 will be “an ideal occasion and suitable ground for opposition parties to propose and endorse the measures they announced during the election campaign.”
“By refusing this opportunity to participate and discuss the budget, it seems clear that it is important for certain political forces to perpetuate political crisis and ungovernability,” he said.
The May elections took place eight months after Madeira’s legislative elections on September 24, 2023, after the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, dissolved the Madeira parliament following a political crisis that erupted in January when Miguel Albuquerque was named as a defendant. in a case of alleged corruption.
As a result, the governor resigned, and control remained with the Madeiran government.
In a mandate that began in 2023 and was expected to last until 2027, Albuquerque, who had headed the executive branch since 2015, managed to get the government program approved with a positive vote from the PSD, the CRS (with which he had a coalition) and PAN (with which it had an agreement for parliamentary influence), as well as voting against the entire opposition. In the subsequent political crisis, the 2024 budget was not voted on.
Over the weekend, Chega once again expressed his willingness to promote a social democratic executive with a different leader, reiterating that “the problem” is not the PSD, “which was the party with the most votes, but the leadership of Miguel Albuquerque.” “.
However, if “the formation of any form of government proves unviable,” Albuquerque’s executive branch will continue to govern “until the constitutional six-month period to call new elections occurs,” said Luse lawyer Guilherme Silve.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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