Right-wingers rush to release (own) findings in ‘twins’ inquiry
Right wing party CHEGA called a press conference yesterday to release a draft report on the commission of inquiry into the controversy surrounding the treatment of Luso-Brazilian twins with the most expensive medication in the world.
This is the ‘scandal’ that broke 16 months ago, through a television exposé suggesting President Marcelo had pulled strings to ensure critically ill infants living in Brazil received “Zolgensma” – a medication that would privately cost around €2 million per child – via the state-funded SNS health service. (The president has repeatedly denied he had any direct involvement).
The Commission of Inquiry was set up on the request of CHEGA, which chaired it – and effectively released its own ‘judgement’ before the report had even been read by other parties taking part in the process.
As such, Bloco de Esquerda MP Joana Mortágua has condemned CHEGA for underhand, political point-scoring, and headline grabbing. “This is an instrumentalisation of a commission of inquiry for electoral purposes”, she said.
CHEGA has always approached this affair as a way of exposing the iniquities at play in Portuguese society.
SIC Notícias has also explained there are other reasons for ‘rushing to release’ the findings: they will essentially become ‘without effect’ in the event of a new election (which looks very much on the cards). When a government ‘falls’, any commissions of inquiry that have not produced their final reports fall with it.
Thus what was the advantage of rushing to release a draft report?
António Rodrigues, a PSD MP on the commission, tells Lusa that what was presented yesterday afternoon “were the conclusions of the rapporteur, Cristina Rodrigues, which do not strictly correspond to what the commission assessed”.
He added the report was only sent to other members on the commission three minutes before CHEGA gave its press conference.
“First of all, we are dealing with a farce, an attempt to deceive people about what the commission discussed during all the months it lasted,” he added.
António Rodrigues also indicated that the PSD will present its own conclusions during the next week, and even admitted ‘asking for an extension of the commission’s operating period’ so that conclusions can be approved by all parties before parliament is dissolved.
“It would be bad for parliament if it had a parliamentary commission of inquiry that began in May last year and that was unable to reach any conclusions,” he said.
This matter has always been opaque in the extreme – with certain figures suggesting they are being made scapegoats for everything that happened.
Suffice it to say the Public Prosecutions Service is also conducting an investigation, and has cited President Marcelo’s son Nuno among official suspects.
