Presidential candidate António Filipe said on Friday that Portuguese voters need higher wages, not motivational speeches, arguing that pay rises are essential to address what he described as unacceptable income inequality.
António Filipe was reacting to the Prime Minister’s Christmas message in which Luís Montenegro argued that Portugal is at a turning point where it must replace the ‘let’s just go with the flow” mentality with one of overcoming, pointing to footballer Cristiano Ronaldo as an example of the spirit of striving for excellence.
For António Filipe, who was visiting the operational facilities of the Sesimbra city council, in the district of Setúbal, to meet with waste collection workers, the issue is not about the mentality of the Portuguese people, but rather the need for them to be valued through public policies.
“I don’t think it’s a question of mentality, because I think the Portuguese people have the right mentality and don’t need these motivational speeches. They don’t need that, they need to be valued, which means that there need to be public policies in place first and foremost, a significant enhancement of the minimum wage, but one that translates into a general increase in wages,” he stressed.
The presidential candidate supported by the Communist Party (PCP) specified that “a general increase in wages is needed to help mitigate unacceptable inequality in income distribution”.
“It is the workers who create wealth, it is through the workforce that this wealth is created, and the workers do not benefit from it, those who benefit from the wealth created are the shareholders of large companies,” he stressed, arguing that there must be public policies to change this situation.
Still referring to the prime minister’s message, António Filipe said it was telling that Luís Montenegro acknowledged the value of Portuguese workers abroad, but failed to explain why that appreciation exists.
“He forgot to explain why they are not valued in Portugal, and they are not because we continue to have low-wage policies. We have 2.5 million workers who earn less than €1,000 per month, we have unacceptably low wages and this relegates the country to discontent and demotivation,” he stressed.
For António Filipe, the prime minister’s message failed to mention many things, including problems in the area of health and labour legislation, and addressed other issues that he considers dispensable.
“The prime minister could have used his message to announce the withdrawal of the labour reform package. He did not. He chose to omit the issue, and I hope the proposal does not proceed. If the Government does not withdraw it, I hope parliament will reject it,” he said.
He added that, if elected president, he would use the constitutional powers of the office to request constitutional review of provisions he believes breach the Constitution and to veto measures he considers harmful to workers.
The presidential elections are scheduled for January 18, 2026.
Source: Lusa
