The President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, announced this Thursday (9) that he will dissolve Parliament and call early elections for March 10 to resolve the political crisis caused by the resignation of Prime Minister, António Costa.
“I choose to dissolve the Assembly of the Republic and call elections on March 10, 2024,” said the Portuguese president two days after Costa resigned due to an investigation into alleged malfeasance, active and passive corruption and influence peddling in business in the lithium and hydrogen sectors.
On Tuesday (7), when announcing his resignation in a televised speech, the socialist highlighted that the position of prime minister is not compatible with the “suspicion of the commission of any criminal act”.
Costa said he was “surprised” by the information of a criminal case against him and stated that he was “totally available” to collaborate with the courts, but denied the accusations and highlighted that he leaves “with a very clear conscience”.
In a statement, the Public Ministry announced on Tuesday that it is investigating Costa and several members of his cabinet.
The Public Ministry carried out searches in “spaces used by the Prime Minister’s chief of staff” and noted that several suspects spoke of Costa’s involvement in the case to “unblock procedures”.
The investigation focuses on lithium mining concessions at the Romano and Barroso mines in the north of the country, as well as a project for a hydrogen plant and another for the construction of a data center, both in Sines.
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