Lisbon, May 16, 2025 (Lusa) - The leader of the centre-right PSD made his traditional descent from Chiado in Lisbon on Friday and promised political and social dialogue if a government is formed, but also to combat the manipulation of facts and misinformation.
Luís Montenegro was speaking to journalists halfway down the street, as he prepared to descend Rua do Carmo, after being questioned about the suspicion that Chega is using fake accounts on social media.
The prime minister began by saying he has ‘given absolute priority to the reliability of information and the value of the media, combating manipulation and misinformation’.
‘I have even appealed to the traditional media not to lose their focus on combating misinformation,’ he stressed.
Then, in this context, without referring directly to Chega, he replied: ‘Those who take advantage today, particularly the digital world and social media, to create waves of manipulation and falsehoods, all politicians and political parties who exploit these means are not worthy of the people's trust’.
Luís Montenegro also warned that it is necessary ‘not to go after news that cannot be traced back to its source and that is created precisely on these networks’.
Regarding Sunday's elections, Luís Montenegro sought to highlight the social agreements made by his government over the last 11 months. It promised to maintain this dialogue if he returned to form a government.
In addition to reiterating his promises to safeguard the welfare state in a country with regulated immigration and political stability, the prime minister said that Portugal needed a government ‘with the legitimacy that comes from the will of the people and with a capacity for dialogue’.
‘A government like ours was able to reach 19 agreements in public administration alone, and signed a tripartite agreement in social consultation with trade unions and business associations. He said it reached further understandings with the social sector, charities and private social solidarity institutions.
In his statements to journalists, he also expressed optimism about the country's economic prospects, noting that 2024 was already a year marked by a complex international situation and that the country had recorded good economic and financial results.
‘In 2024, there was already instability in Europe and the world, and Portugal was the country where people's incomes grew the most due to tax cuts and wage increases. And it is this path of valuing people, creating wealth to combat poverty and solve the country's structural problems that this government is presenting,’ he maintained.
On the way down from Chiado, the PSD leader was accompanied by his wife, Carla Montenegro, the mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas, the speaker of parliament, and members of his government, such as the finance minister, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, who is also the AD's lead candidate for Lisbon.
In the front row were the CDS leader, Nuno Melo, former Social Democratic leader Manuela Ferreira Leite, the PSD's ‘first MP’ Leonor Beleza, and other members of his government, such as Miguel Pinto Luz, António Leitão Amaro, and Margarida Balseiro Lopes.
PMF/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
