LISBON, Nov 10 (NNN-LNA) – Portugal’s President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, yesterday, dissolved the Assembly of the Republic (Parliament) and announced snap elections for Mar 10, 2024.
His announcement came, after the resignation of Prime Minister, Antonio Costa, who is being investigated for corruption.
In a televised national address, Rebelo de Sousa said, the call for early elections comes from the need for “clarity and direction, to overcome an unexpected void that surprised the Portuguese.”
He thanked Costa for “his service to the public cause” and said, he hoped that “time would allow for clarification of what happened,” referring to the accusations against the former prime minister.
The president justified that, he postponed the formal process of the government’s resignation by decree, to allow for the approval and implementation of the state budget for 2024 “to guarantee the indispensable economic and social stability.”
“The approval of the budget will allow us to meet the expectations of many Portuguese citizens, and to keep up with the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, which does not stop and cannot stop, with the transition from one government to a caretaker government, or later with the dissolution of Parliament,” he said.
This week, the Public Prosecutor’s Office revealed its investigation into Costa for alleged corruption, in lithium and hydrogen exploitation contracts, leading to Costa’s resignation and the indictment of nine suspects, five of whom have been detained.– NNN-LNA
