The National Association of Discos was expectant with the decision that could come out on Thursday from the Council of Ministers regarding the reopening of the sector, warning that gatherings of young people, without any kind of control, could spread the virus.
Speaking to Lusa news agency, José Gouveia, from the National Association of Discos (ADN), explained that the last contact he had with the Government was about two weeks ago and, even so, «it was informal», to understand «the intentions and knowledge strategy for the future'.
"We have some expectations, as we were told that there would be no anticipation of the measures and that the clubs would only reopen in phase 3 of the decontamination plan, in October, regardless of whether the vaccination reaches the numbers it is expected to reach this week," he said. .
José Gouveia said that it is with apprehension that the association has seen the situations that have occurred in the Santos area, in Lisbon, and in Rua de São Paulo and other places in the city, such as the gatherings of young people, which are also spreading throughout the country, also with private parties on beaches or farms, stressing that this is a situation for which ADN had already warned in the summer and even before the summer began.
"It was not expected to arrest young people at home and there was a need for outdoor clubs to open with extended hours," he said, noting that the issue is that, currently, "at the height of fun", what happens is what you want that “young people stop and go to their homes”.
“Now that doesn't exist now, it didn't exist in the past, and it will never exist in the future. What we are promoting in a way with this type of measures are gatherings, illegal parties that have been spreading all over the place and the spread of the [covid-19] virus through the absence of any kind of measures or restrictions places,” he explained.
The official also warned of the possibility of the growth of "a parallel economy" that has been felt, since the illegal parties "do not have any kind of control", especially "with drinks being bought in any supplier or supermarket and then sold overvalued and without any kind of control'.
“ADN sees this with great concern and I don't understand why so far clubs have not been given the opportunity to demonstrate that they can: transform what is an open-air disco, totally uncontrolled, to a controlled environment, where there is a screening , where people have a control by certificates, etc, etc.», he lamented.
José Gouveia also stressed that inside the clubs "acts of vandalism or extreme violence are not allowed", such as those that are known recently, since there are security guards that allow anticipating these situations, and direct communication with the forces of security.
The official underlined still not understand why the Government "leave them to the sidelines and not call the ground to solve the situation".
“Until now, the image that people had of our country abroad, in terms of the night, was very positive. Now we are living in a time of total insecurity in which nobody does anything», he vented, recalling that discotheque customers have been vaccinated for a long time.
The gradual lifting of restrictions due to vaccination against covid-19 started on 1 August, with rules applicable throughout the continental territory, including the limit of closing time until 2:00 am for restoration.
These relief measures included the reopening of bars and other beverage establishments “subject to the rules of catering”. Bars that refuse to operate within the catering rules and clubs remain closed until October.
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