Prime Minister Luis Montenegro and Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento devalued the controversy by bringing charges of fraud against Patricia Dantas in the last legislature.
The former PSD lawmaker, appointed deputy finance minister, resigned from her post in the office of Joaquim Miranda Sarmento on Tuesday.
The 52-year-old Madeiran is accused in a court case that is already at the trial stage on charges of issuing false invoices to obtain European funds. At that time, the economist was the executive president of Startup Madeira.
The facts relate to the period from 2008 to 2013. The Justice Department’s indictment dates back to 2018 and is part of a megatrial involving 120 defendants that centers on the now-vanished Associação Industrial do Minho.
Elected by the Madeira Circle in 2022, Patricia Dantas completed the last legislature in the PSD parliamentary group. Faced with fraud charges against a deputy at the time, Social Democratic President Luis Montenegro linked her to his predecessor Ruy Rio: “Did I invite her to become a deputy? I was not president of the SDP.” , he emphasized. And he relativized the discomfort associated with the topic. “I would prefer that the MP didn’t have this problem. She already had this problem before she became an MP,” he said.
In May 2022, the Assembly of the Republic unanimously approved the lifting of Patricia Dantas’ parliamentary immunity, a decision that the Braga court had been waiting for to begin the trial. The deputy began to periodically suspend her mandate at each court hearing. The Transparency Commission adopted an “interpolated suspension of the parliamentary mandate,” placing Patricia Dantas under the obligation to “mandatorily report on the aforementioned time periods.”
The leadership of the PSD parliamentary college, then headed by Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, appointed her to the commission of inquiry into the leadership of TAP in February 2023. Luis Montenegro again played down the controversy. “This deputy has been in office since the beginning of the legislative body, this process was already underway, she already had this procedural position and is doing what she already did before there was this commission of inquiry. Therefore, there is nothing new here.” , He said.
In May 2023, the PSD withdrew political confidence from the deputy Joaquim Pinto Moreira, accused of Operation Vortex, for renewing his mandate without notifying the leadership. Asked about the difference in treatment between the two deputies involved in the legal proceedings, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento said there were “very different situations” at stake. Patricia Dantas: “When she was elected, I already expected this situation,” she said.
On Monday, the economist began work as deputy to the current portfolio holder, responsible for establishing a bridge between the ministry and parliament. However, on Tuesday he informed Joaquim Miranda Sarmento of his resignation from his post, “preserving the presumption of innocence, which is necessary even after review,” according to a note sent to the editorial office of the ministry.
Author: morning Post
Source: CM Jornal
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