Portugal in turmoil after the corruption scandal that engulfed the government.
The Portuguese Prime Minister, the socialist António Costa, Has mandate returned into the hands of the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, following news regarding acriminal investigation on his account. The investigation led to the indictment of one of his ministers and his chief of staff.
In a statement broadcast live on television, Costa said confirmed the existence of the investigation: “The duties of prime minister are not compatible with any suspicion of my integrity. In these circumstances, I submitted my resignation to the President of the Republic. It will now be up to the head of state to decide whether to accept them. “The future will depend on the president's decisions,” added Costa, one of the few socialists at the head of a European government who later said he was “confident in the functioning of justice” making himself available to clarify any suspicions about his actions.
Favors for hydrogen and lithium companies
The investigation focuses on fraud in the hydrogen and lithium sectors. In particular, we focus on projects lithium extraction in Montalegre, in Northern Portugal, and projects involving a green hydrogen plant and data center in the coastal town of Sines.
The accusation would be that of a possible preferential treatment by the Portuguese government against various companies in the sector.
Some ministries searched
The prime minister's residence and the ministries of Infrastructure and Environment were searched. They were issued arrest warrants for Vítor Escaria, Costa's chief of staff, the mayor of Sines and other three peopleand because of the risk of escape and destruction of evidence.
The Portuguese Minister of Infrastructure was also indicted Joao Galamba and the President of the Board of Directors of the Portuguese Environmental Protection Agency.
The case involving the Portuguese Prime Minister concerns, according to the prosecution, suspicions of "embezzlement, active and passive corruption of political office holders and influence peddling" in the context of the awarding of lithium exploration and production licenses of hydrogen. The Supreme Court is investigating the use of the prime minister's name and his involvement in the practices under investigation.
Supreme Court investigation
During the investigation, “the suspects also mentioned the name and authority of the prime minister,” the prosecutor said in a statement. Suspected of having himself intervened "to unblock procedures" in this matter, António Costa will now be the subject of an iautonomous investigation by the Supreme Court, which has jurisdiction for crimes involving high officials of the state.
