Assunção Cristas, candidate for the leadership of the CDS/PP, is already thinking about the next Legislative Elections. Although the current Government was sworn in less than three months ago, the former Minister of Agriculture, defended at last night's meeting with militants and supporters in Faro, that his party “must be prepared”, since “no one knows when the next Legislatives will be”.
The message was conveyed to around 70 people who gathered in a room at the Hotel Faro, this Thursday, to participate in another contact session with the party bases, which the candidate for the leadership of the CDS/PP has been promoting and will take her to various parts of the country.
In his initial intervention, the only one that the media was allowed to attend, Assunção Cristas did not spare criticism of the current PS Government, "supported by parties of the radical Left", which he believes does not guarantee stability, even speaking of "constant retreats of the governance partners'. And, he recalls, "now we've seen that it doesn't matter who wins the elections, what matters is that one or more parties manage to guarantee 116, or more, deputies."
Despite not knowing in full the proposal for the State Budget for 2016, which should enter Parliament today, Assunção Cristas anticipates and says he believes that the Government will fail in its promise to reduce austerity, «for what has been public".
«They announce that they are going to give with one hand, but then withdraw with both. It will be the entire middle class to pay for the concessions that António Costa is making to his partners of the radical Left», he considered, recalling the announced increase in the price of fuel.
At this time, Assunção Cristas is the only assumed candidate, but until February 20th, alternative candidacies may appear, although no one has implemented them, until today. For the rest, the sessions like the one promoted in the Algarve are not internal campaigns, but "in the sense of listening to people", since the former minister has not yet presented a motion with her programme, something that she will only do after receive contributions from militants, but also from supporters and independent personalities who so wish.
This was, moreover, one of the main messages transmitted yesterday. The regional leader of the CDS/PP José Pedro Caçorino launched the session, defending a greater opening of the party to civil society and that “some dogmas be dropped” by which the CDS/PP has governed its strategy, “without losing the ideology and the identity'.
“The future success of the CDS/PP depends a lot on its capacity to welcome independents. The CDS should not and does not have to be a party clinging to ideological platitudes. It must open up to society», he defended.
A message reinforced by Assunção Cristas, who, in addition to defending the opening of the party to society, considered that "doctrine is important, but it is necessary to address the concrete problems of the people."
The session was, moreover, open to independents who wanted to contribute to the discussion. But the debate aimed at opening the party to society was closed within four walls, as, after the initial speeches, the media were invited to leave the room, so that the conversation only reached the ears of the militants and supporters.
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