The president of IL today expressed “low expectations” of the Government Program, considering that it should fall “short of what is needed to change the country”, and promised to challenge the executive to respond to the needs of the Portuguese.
Speaking to journalists after visiting a school in Algés, Rui Rocha said that he would like the Program of the XXIV Constitutional Government, which will be delivered to parliament today, “to really change the country, to change it with courage, with energy”.
“What I expect is less than that, to be honest, and so my expectations are lower than what I think would be necessary to change the country,” he said.
The president of the IL stressed that the party has put forward proposals such as the creation of a childcare voucher of 480 euros, or the repeal of measures in the “More Housing” package, and promised to “continue to challenge the government whenever it falls short of the needs of the Portuguese, with less courage than is necessary to change the country”.
“We will be here to be demanding about the Government Program and to challenge the Government to take the country forward, to move forward, to structurally change the country, which is what is needed,” he said.
Speaking to journalists, Rui Rocha was also asked if the IL had already decided how it would vote on the proposal for a parliamentary committee of inquiry into the case of the Portuguese-Brazilian twins treated at Santa Maria Hospital, presented by Chega, but he replied that, although this initiative was announced a week ago, it has not yet been presented in parliament.
“As always, we don’t distinguish between the origins of initiatives, we assess their merit. When it enters parliament, when we see the grounds, scope and objectives of this committee of inquiry, we will decide,” he explained.
From the outset, continued Rui Rocha, the IL is “always available to clarify the issues that need to be clarified”, but it is necessary to understand “what is the basis, purpose and scope” of the commission of inquiry proposed by Chega.
Asked how he sees the fact that Chega has set a deadline of Friday for the PSD to announce how it will vote on this initiative, otherwise he will have to impose it, Rui Rocha replied that “that’s a matter between the two parties”.
The IL leader pointed out that there have been “many commissions of inquiry being announced”, also referring to the proposed inquiry into the privatization of ANA in 2013 announced by the PCP, and said that the party looks at all of them in the same way.
“We’ll look at the grounds for these commissions of inquiry and make them possible if we think they make sense given the grounds, scope and objectives. We don’t make threats or deadlines now. That’s something else, it’s no longer politics in the interests of the Portuguese, it’s theater,” he criticized.
The Program of the XXIV Constitutional Government will be delivered today to the Assembly of the Republic at the end of the morning, after having been approved by the Council of Ministers.
