In a series of strong statements made tonight to SIC Notícias, Alberto João Jardim, former president of the Regional Government, addressed the current political crisis in the Region and the recent collapse of the Regional Government led by Miguel Albuquerque, considering it to be a “completely crazy situation”.
Jardim’s criticism was not limited to the regional scope, but also extended to the actions of the Government of the Republic, attributing the main blame for this crisis to it, since, in his opinion, “it was not capable of carrying out its mission as it should have been”.
The current leadership of the PS-Madeira, headed by Paulo Cafôfo, was also not immune to the criticisms of the former government official, who highlighted the “three shots in the foot” made in the space of a week. “He started by illegally transferring the Motion of Censure. Then, knowing the population of Madeira, the first thing he did was to propose a coalition that included a communist organisation, the Bloco de Esquerda. Now, here in Madeira, saying that he is going to form a coalition with the BE is the same as saying “please vote for Miguel Albuquerque”. And, not content with this nonsense, he has now made a third: he has created a silly poster in Lisbon, where he makes fun of the Madeiran people and the Madeiran dialect”, he stressed.
Regarding Miguel Albuquerque, Alberto João Jardim considered him to be the “knot of the problem” in Madeira. However, he acknowledged that, due to the “victimization” promoted by various sectors of the Republic and the mistakes of the opposition, the current leader of the PSD-Madeira may end up winning, even in the face of the crisis. “Everything is working in his favor,” he stated, predicting that Albuquerque may even improve his performance in the next elections. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he now achieved a better result than he did and this whole mess of Madeira going backwards continues,” he concluded.