Family business is at heart of Portugal’s political crisis
Portugal’s attorney general Amadeu Guerra has announced that the Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened a preventive investigation into the prime minister and his family company, Spinumviva.
Leaving the Supreme Court of Justice in Lisbon, where a criminal law colloquium is taking place, Mr Guerra explained that three complaints relating to the prime minister’s family business have been received.
“From the details we have collected so far, there are no grounds to open any inquiry,” he said, adding that precisely because of the lack of details, it has been decided to open a preventive inquiry.
This preventive inquiry aims to assess whether there are details to proceed with the opening of an inquiry. It is being led by the Central Department of Investigation and Criminal Action (DCIAP).
Amadeu Guerra did not set any deadlines for this process, and explained that the preventive inquiry will be based on information obtained from open sources and that data will be requested from various entities.
“These are not intrusive means,” he added.
Last week, the Attorney General’s Office announced that it had received an anonymous complaint about the prime minister’s company, which is at the heart of the current political crisis, and why the government’s motion of confidence yesterday was overwhelmingly rejected.
Luís Montenegro has consistently said that he has nothing to hide; that he has done nothing wrong – and even that he would continue as prime minister if he was cited in an official investigation into his involvement with the company, as he has done nothing illegal. ND
