BE says government must clarify its plan for Santa Casa

The Left Bloc (BE) said on Tuesday that the government must clarify the plan and goals it has for the Santa Casa da Miseriórdia de Lisboa (SCML) and opened the door to approving any hearings on the topic.

Speaking to reporters in Parliament, BE MP Isabel Pires stressed that after the dissolution of the SCML board this Monday, “the most important clarification at the moment is of a political nature: what is the PSD/CDS government’s plan for SCML.”

“It’s not clear yet. The government only commented on the issue of names and the reasons for this dismissal. What we need to know, especially since this is not just any institution – it has not only financial scale, but also a very large social impact – that’s what’s really at stake,” he said.

Isabel Pires recalled that the financial problems of the institution were “already returning” and it was already known that the reports for 2021 and 2022 “had problems”, emphasizing that the Assembly of the Republic had already held hearings last year precisely in order to “try to understand what happened with SCML accounts.

“This hearing work has been done, and we will obviously follow all requests for hearings that arise in this context, because it is our intention to seek clarification,” he said.

At this point, the PS and IL have already requested hearings on the case, including the Minister of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security Maria do Rosario Palma Ramalho and the SCML Ombudsman, dismissed by the executive, Ana Jorge.

Asked whether former minister and former director of CDS Pedro Mota Soares, who according to Sábado magazine will be the next SCML provider, has the conditions to take on this role, Isabel Pires replied that for now it is only a matter of forecasts that are unknown whether it will come true or not.

“The only thing we can say about Pedro Mota Soares is that I believe that many people in the country still remember the time when he was Minister of Social Security. [entre 2011 e 2015, durante o Governo de Passos Coelho] and this is not exactly a time of good memories. So obviously that could be a concern for us,” he said, although he noted that “nothing has been confirmed.”

Asked if she believed that with the dismissal of Ana Jorge we could face a “political sanitization,” the BE deputy replied that the party is not in the habit of “commenting on such changes.”

“What interests us and what the Portuguese people must understand, more than this exchange of names for people who are more or less close politically, what really matters is the politics behind this choice,” he said, repeating that “this , so not yet disclosed by the government.”

On Monday, the government announced that SCML’s management had been fired “with immediate effect,” citing the team’s “inability to cope with the institution’s serious financial and operational challenges.”

The SCML is currently headed by former socialist health minister Ana Jorge, who served as ombudsman for about a year, and the remaining SCML board consisted of a deputy ombudsman and four members.

“Unfortunately, this decision became inevitable as the now retiring Board proved unable to cope with the institution’s serious financial and operational challenges, which could, in the short term, jeopardize the fundamental mission of social action for which it is responsible,” he explained. . in an executive statement.