«A lot of work, seriousness and a great concern with the city and, above all, with the people, with the population of Lagos». This is what Hugo Pereira promised, minutes after taking office as mayor of Lagos, following a clear and expressive victory of the PS at the polls, on 26 September.
This was one of the premieres of the night, taking into account that Hugo Pereira, despite having finished the previous term in the presidential seat, was elected president for the first time in the 2021 Autárquicas.
In 2017, the socialist candidate and winner of the elections was Joaquina Matos, who was also one of the protagonists of the evening, as she is the new president of the Municipal Assembly (AM) of Lagos.
On the other hand, Paulo Morgado, who had been the president of this last organ, elected by the PS for many years, had his last act yesterday as a member of AM lacobrigense.
In a Lagos Cultural Center very well composed of public, seven members of the municipal executive took office and 24 of the 25 members of the Municipal Assembly (one did not attend, for personal reasons).
At the City Council, in addition to Hugo Pereira, the socialists Paulo Reis, Sara Coelho, Luís dos Reis and Sandra Oliveira, the social democrat Pedro Moreira and Alexandre Nunes, from the CDU, took office as councilors.
At the Municipal Assembly, which had its first session of the mandate half an hour after taking office, the members present, including the four presidents of the Parish Council, elected by majority the single list at the table of this body, composed by Joaquina Matos (president), Paula Couto (1st secretary) and José Jácome (2nd secretary), with 16 votes in favor and eight blank.
In the end, and after having highlighted the difficulties experienced in the final stretch of the previous term due to the pandemic, which largely coincided with the time he was at the head of the municipality's destinies, Hugo Pereira revealed his plans for the future to journalists.
"What we are proposing for this new electoral cycle are proposals that came from behind, with the adaptations that had to take place due to the pandemic, with an even greater concern for social issues and the local economy," he said.
In other words, this is, as one would expect, a project of continuity, not least because it was already Hugo Pereira who “ruled” the Chamber for two years.
“We have many ambitious proposals. What is at the forefront is, clearly, the construction of housing at controlled costs. This will be in our first line of action, as the main option», assured the mayor of Lagos.
“The Local Housing Strategy that we have drawn up requires us to have a six-year plan. It's a very tight time trial. Thus, our biggest concern was to ensure that we had all the land and projects started for the approximately 400 fires that are included in the strategy», he explained.
In the first four years, corresponding to this mandate, the new mayor of Lacobrigense counts on having, "at least half of the houses built and a great part of the works in conditions to advance in the following two years".
«Right now we have two dozen houses under construction, in Bensafrim and Sargaçal. We have a project for another 12 houses at controlled costs already in the final phase to open a tender and adjudicated, and the project is to be carried out a large cluster of 100 dwellings, both in the parish of São Gonçalo, near the center of Lagos», he framed.
"When we celebrate a year of mandate, we expect to have a lot of work in the adjudication phase and even in an advanced construction phase", he added.
These houses are designed for young, middle-class couples, «with incomes that make it difficult to buy a house at the average prices practiced here in the Algarve, due to competition with tourism, but who earn too much to have access to social housing».
Another priority is “interventions related to the environment and climate change”, namely actions “across the sea and coastline”, with a view to their preservation and “the defense and protection of people”.
Hugo Pereira also intends to «continue to invest in what is so important in Lagos, which is our cultural part and our historical part».
«We have a Museum to inaugurate on the day of the city. We have the work of another, the Archeology Museum, to begin at all times and the plan of the walls, which are a unique monument that Lagos has and has never been properly valued, something that we now want to do it», he summed up.
Health will be another concern, with the signing of an agreement with the National School of Public Health, for the development of a health and well-being plan for the municipality.
The objective is to create a specification «to demand from the Government a big investment in primary care and hospital care, since we have a very old public hospital, which we have been demanding for a long time a new or improvements to the existing one.
«We have a lot of work to do, but our focus will continue to be people», concluded Hugo Pereira.
Joaquina Matos, who four years ago took office as mayor, this time also took office, but as the first elected member of the Municipal Assembly.
Moments after being chosen by her peers to preside over this deliberative body, an achievement of the 25th of April, since «in the “other lady's time” there were no Municipal Assemblies”, Joaquina Matos said she was proud to return to this «house of local politics, the heart of democracy».
“I feel very honored and happy with this new challenge and with this new role, which I will play in a constructive way, with a posture of collaboration and dialogue, among all political representatives. I was elected to this body for the first time in 1993 and, at the time, I also felt honored and happy to take office,” she said in a brief speech.
Already Paulo Morgado, his predecessor, left a message for the elected, at the time of farewell.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be elected to serve the citizens of Lacobrigens. Always remember that!” he said.
“Your mission is to serve others. And, as I am well acquainted with almost all the people who will take office today, I know that they will all give their best», concluded the outgoing President of the Municipal Assembly.
Photos: Hugo Rodrigues | Sul Informação
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