The Interior Ministry has given the green light to the installation of security cameras on the Matosinhos waterfront, the municipal council of the municipality in Porto district announced on Monday.
In a statement, the municipality said that “at the insistence of the mayor of Matosinhos,” Luiz Salgueiro, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Margarida Blasco, confirmed “the reinforcement of police activity on the waterfront, as well as the installation of CCTV cameras.”
“We are very pleased to receive this decision from the Minister. The device that last year strengthened the safety of Matosinhos beach, in which the PSP, GNR, the Marine Police and the Municipal Police participated, was a success, both in preventing crime and in the perception of safety among the population. We had a swimming season without incidents, and therefore it was important that MAI listened to our request and reproduced this year the model that has proven its effectiveness,” says the mayor de. Matosinhos is mentioned in the press release.
According to the municipality, Margarida Blasco made a surprise visit to Matosinhos beach on Sunday and guaranteed that the plan drawn up last year would be implemented this year as well.
The minister also gave the green light to a request from the Matosinhos City Council to install CCTV cameras, which was under consideration by her ministry.
Luisa Salgueiro states that “with the approval of the Ministry of the Interior” the municipality “will immediately initiate all procedures with the security forces and other organizations with a view to its installation.”
At the last meeting of the Matosinhos leader on Wednesday, Luiza Salgueiro publicly confirmed this request.
Before the agenda, the mayor announced that on May 6 she had sent a request to the Minister of the Interior to strengthen security at Matosinhos beach in the Porto region during the summer, as happened in 2023.
The mayor, who also takes over the leadership of the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP), said that Matosinhos beach is the largest in the north of the country, which requires extraordinary security measures during this summer period, when the influx of tourists is very high.
“After three months, I do not consider the guardianship authorities’ silence on my request acceptable,” he said.
Luisa Salgueiro explained that police officers were carrying out routine patrols but were unable to respond to needs.
In 2023, the government, then led by Socialist António Costa, implemented a prevention and safety plan for Matosinhos beach, which included increasing police forces, especially during peak hours.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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