The President of Cape Verde believes that “excessive partisanship” harms the functioning of the state

The President of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, said this Wednesday in Praia that the effectiveness of governance and the state suffers from “excessive partisanship”.

“The big problem in Cape Verde is the excessive cost of political participation,” taking into account “essentially the repression that the people suffer from,” he said at a politics conference at which he spoke along with two other former leaders of the state, Jorge Carlos Fonseca and Pedro Pires are a rare meeting of political figures.

“This excessive partisanship has consequences for the effectiveness of government and the overall effectiveness of the state. The issue is not the result of individual or organizational activity, but the level of political loyalty that exists in relation to a particular political party. ” he said in response to a young man in the audience at the all-night event.

José Maria Neves used a comparison once made by a university professor: “He said that the administration [pública] It’s Fogo’s volcano because everything, absolutely everything, ends up at the top of the administration,” given that middle managers fear they are taking sides.

The head of state illustrated this by stating that “the CEO does not take political risk in making certain decisions” and that the process should “reach the minister’s office or the prime minister’s office so that everything can be resolved.”

The situation means that, according to José María Neves, “some ministerial offices in Cape Verde” are “almost confessionals” where people “wait there to confess to the priest”, a hint of hierarchy. According to him, the situation “has an impact on the work of healthcare, education and a number of other sectors.”

“I think we need to make a real revolution in education,” he added. “For 50 years [de independência]we did what we had to do well enough, now if we continue to do the same thing we will obviously go backwards.

The country will lose in terms of competitiveness,” he said, referring to the independence Portugal gained in 1975, almost half a century ago. its limits of action.

The Cape Verdean president’s comments come as he marks two years in office, and after weeks filled with calls for the government to consult more widely, he even wrote that there was a distance bordering on “constitutional disloyalty.” .

José Maria Neves was elected with the support of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV), while the government is led by the Movement for Democracy (MpD), which has an absolute majority in parliament, with both being the dominant political forces. in the country. In response to a question from the audience, the head of state noted that the experience of cohabitation in Cape Verde has worked, with moments of tension that presidents must discuss to lead to increased constitutional literacy.

Jorge Carlos Fonseca, a former president who was supported by MpD between 2011 and 2021 (and who, like Pedro Pires, worked with then Prime Minister José Maria Neves), noted that this type of tension has already emerged and that it is healthy symptoms of semi-presidentialism a democratic system that must give priority to dialogue. But there are other pillars of democracy that are suffering, he noted.

“One might get the impression that the situation in Cape Verde is dire from a democratic point of view. In my opinion this is not the case. There are shortcomings, loopholes, cracks in building democracy and the rule of law that deserve our attention,” noted. One of the pillars that “deserves strengthening” is the technical capacity and independence of the judiciary.”

“I know judges don’t like to hear this, but I have the idea that obviously the judiciary in Cape Verde is independent, but I don’t think it’s technically capable enough yet, and that’s an important aspect of independence,” he said. He.

Another pillar, he added, is civil society, which can make democracy stronger if it is “able to function as a kind of check on all authorities.”

“We don’t have that in Cape Verde yet,” he added, advocating a broad focus on education, especially teacher training, following institutional best practices. In the guide to policy innovation, which was the original theme of the conference, former President Pedro Pires, supported by PAICV, recommended “reason.”

“When a country is at stake,” he considered dialogue necessary: ​​“This is how I see relations between powers.”

“We live in an extremely critical situation,” he said, alluding to global geopolitics, “and this advises us to consult each other. We consult not in good weather, but in bad weather,” he added in what he considers to be a question ” reason and a certain political experience.”