Housing, revolution in green spaces, restoration of the «degraded municipal auditorium» or the Fortaleza de Santa Catarina, renovation of the riverside area and the Manuel Teixeira Gomes Secondary School, redevelopment of municipal road 531 Penina/Montes de Alvor. Isilda Gomes, who took office yesterday for her third and final term at the head of the Portimão Chamber, outlined, in a 20-minute speech, the priorities of her new executive, in which a new department will even be created, the of Parishes.
But, in a kind of barb for Luís Carito, opposition councilor elected by the «Portimão Mais Feliz» movement and former vice-president of the Chamber, the mayor warned that he will keep «the focus on scrupulous fulfillment of the financial goals that we are still obliged to respect».
It is because, he guaranteed, the action of the new executive, now reinforced with a solid majority, «can never bring back spending and distance from the reality that surrounds us».
The installation ceremony of the municipal bodies of the Municipality of Portimão for the 2021-2025 quadrennium took place in the large auditorium of TEMPO, with a completely full room. Guests – Secretary of State Jorge Botelho, deputy Luís Graça (also president of the PS/Algarve), the rector of the University of Algarve, the president of CCDR, the director of the Airport of Faro, the regional director of the Social Security Institute, the regional director of Culture, the general secretary of AMAL, among others -, religious authorities and police, businessmen, association leaders, family members, municipal officials, friends and other citizens did not leave a seat vacant in the large concert hall.
In her speech, Isilda Gomes made a point of greeting all the hundreds of people from Portimo, who, from the most diverse political forces, were candidates in the recent Local Elections, "for their availability, responsibility and courage." "In times when local elected representatives are often easy targets for defamatory campaigns and their private lives scoured, giving face to a project and actively participating in democratic life is an attitude that deserves the recognition of all", he stressed, in a much applauded tirade.
The mayor also left words of appreciation for the political path of João Vieira, outgoing president of the Municipal Assembly, who retires after 44 years of public life. Minutes later, the new AM president, Isabel Guerreiro, would also pay tribute to her predecessor.
As for the opposition, namely the councilors elected by the coalition led by the PSD (Rui André and Ana Fazenda), Luís Carito (Portimão Mais Feliz) and Pedro Xavier (Chega), Isilda Gomes expressed her «hope that they will do everything to take on an opposition responsible, but constructive, vigilant and available to reach consensus». "The people from Portimo will not understand if it doesn't!" he warned.
It is that, he argued, "in our hearts there can be no place for hatred or personal disputes." In fact, living up to these words, at the end of her speech, the president of the Chamber made a point of greeting all eight councilors, even those who are currently in opposition and with whom she was incompatible in the past, such as Luís Carito and Ana Fazenda,
Returning to priorities, Isilda Gomes recalled that there is "a large number of projects and works in progress, or that will soon begin and become a reality." Therefore, the time is for «sleeves to roll up because there is a lot of work to be done in the immediate future».
"We will take housing as a major priority," he guaranteed. "There will be more than 60 million euros for the construction of housing for sale and rental, in the controlled cost construction, affordable rental and
resolvable lease'.
Portimão Town Hall will also “recover the Pontal district, because it is part of our history and our memory”, as well as “provoke a revolution in green spaces”. «The new Bom Retiro Environmental Park and the creation of the Barranco do Rodrigo Urban Park will bring about a new relationship between Portimonsians and the city's green spaces».
Also in this context, the mayor spoke again about the redevelopment of Jardim Gil Eanes and Jardim Sárrea Prado, next to the railway station. These long-promised projects "must stop being continually postponed".
The municipality's priorities, in the next four years, will also include the recovery of the «degraded municipal auditorium», the «renovation of the riverside area», «recovery of the Santa Catarina Fortress», of the municipal road 531 Penina/Montes de Alvor, through «major renovation of the Manuel Teixeira Gomes Secondary School», or even the «construction of the new cemetery, with the concession of the crematorium».
Because it was time to announce projects, Isilda Gomes was wide open and also promised more classrooms, vacancies in crèches, to continue to support associations, as well as the reduction of municipal taxation, «whenever possible».
Stating that there is a «city project marked by continuity, but also by innovation», to create a «multifaceted city», the mayor added: «we do not hide that we have the ambition of Portimão to be a city more oriented towards culture, which promotes the love of books and reading, which supports local artists and the cultural reference offer, involving existing structures and local associations».
Also in this area, he stressed that "an ambitious program is underway to safeguard the heritage, material and immaterial, of this community, which includes bold interventions in the three parishes of the county."
Recalling that this was his last inaugural speech as president of the Portimão Chamber, he put the final focus on the need to promote citizen participation in life, projects and public governance. To that end, he revealed, the municipality will “take advantage of the centenary of the city's elevation, which is marked in 2024, to increase mechanisms for democratic participation and debate with citizens a new guiding letter for the development of this community”.
"We want a Strategic Plan for Portimão, open to all citizens, so that everyone can contribute to the future of this land," he said.
After the swearing in of all the members of the Municipal Assembly, with many new faces and the presence, for the first time, of representatives from PAN and Chega, and the inauguration of the new executive, also with new features, the first meeting of the AM for election of your table.
Although most Socialists in this body are very comfortable, two lists have been presented. One (list A) was from the PS, with Isabel Guerreiro as president, Carlos Café as first secretary and Sheila Tomé as second secretary. The other (B) was from the PSD, featuring Carlos Gouveia as the presidential candidate, Marta Caetano as first secretary and Vítor Couto as second secretary. The PS list A won with 15 votes, with 9 for B and six white votes.
In the end, the new AM president Isabel Guerreiro, in her first speech in that position, expressed her willingness to collaborate with the Chamber and with the president Isilda Gomes. He addressed all the deputies, saying that it was an honor to serve with everyone and paid homage to João Vieira.
Photos: Elisabete Rodrigues | Sul Informação
The following elected to the Portimão City Council:
Isilda Gomes, Álvaro Bila, Filipe Vital, Teresa Mendes and João Gâmboa (PS); Rui André and Ana Fazenda (Um Novo Portimão – PSD, MPT and PPM); Luís Carito (Movimento Portimão Mais Feliz – CDS, Nós Cidadãos and Aliança); and Pedro Xavier (ENDS).
The inductees for the Portimão Municipal Assembly were:
Isabel Guerreiro, Carlos Café, Abílio Lima, Marina Esteves, José Figueiredo Santos, Júlio Ferreira, Sheila Tomé, Joaquim Paulino, Pedro Moreira, Ana Sofia Vicente, Carlos Osório and Rui Algarve (PS);
Carlos Gouveia Martins, Natalino Alves, Cristina Velha, Américo Mateus and Vítor Couto (Um Novo Portimão – PSD, MPT and PPM);
Ângela Venâncio Quadros, João Gonçalves Caetano and Marta Caetano (Movimento Portimão Mais Feliz – CDS, Nós Cidadãos and Aliança);
Mário Espinha, Paulo Jorge Canha and Maria Manuela Trigo (CHEGA);
Pedro Mota and Marco Pereira (Left Block);
Maria de Lourdes Melo (CDU);
Daniela Duarte (PAN).
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