Resignation follows admission of relationship with director in company
GALP’s CEO and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors, Filipe Silva, resigned citing family reasons yesterday, following an anonymous complaint about his romantic relationship with a senior company director who reported directly to him.
As multiple sources have stressed, the complaint centred over ‘a possible conflict of interest’.
Silva himself is understood to have confirmed the existence of the relationship to the Ethics Committee on Monday, before announcing his resignation.
He is cited by SIC Notícias as having told ECO online that the relationship did not compromise the integrity of his decisions while CEO.
GALP’s Code of Conduct states that ‘a conflict of interest arises when our personal interests, whether financial, professional, family, political or other, or the interests of someone with whom we have a close relationship, influence or can be perceived as influencing the objective exercise of our professional duties and responsibilities’.
In the oil company’s Code of Conduct there is no explicit reference to situations of close and personal relationships, nor whether these should be reported.
Experts in labour law have also dismissed the existence of grounds for dismissal for just cause, stating that there is no legal basis for a dismissal based solely on the existence of a romantic relationship between employees.
Lawyer António Garcia Pereira told Jornal Económico that a possible dismissal in this case “smacks of a character assassination operation designed to get rid of someone and pave the way for possible interested parties in the position”, stressing that workers ‘retain the right to their private lives’.
But, in a statement sent to the Portuguese Securities Market Commission (CMVM), GALP said the resignation has immediate effect, and in the next few days it will announce the new executive leadership.
“I would like to emphasise the contribution that Filipe has made to the Company over the last 12 years, a period in which his dedication has been important to Galp’s growth. GALP’s Executive Committee remains in the hands of a highly qualified team, which will ensure the execution and implementation of the company’s strategy,’ emphasised Paula Amorim, Chairman of GALP’s Board of Directors.
Paula Amorim, daughter of fellow businessman Américo Amorim, refused to confirm whether Silva’s relationship had jeopardised the integrity of the executive committee’s decisions, say reports.
Filipe Silva is now expected to take up a post at the company founded by his father, Trivalor, according to Negócios online.
Source material: ZAP/ Negocios/ Jornal Económico/SIC Notícias
