“The regime in Madeira is a pure parliamentary regime and, in this sense, with my resignation, we are now in a position to make the presentation of a new Government, with a new Government program and a new Budget, which guarantees the region’s governability and, above all, ensures that there is not a very long hiatus that would jeopardise the functioning of the region”, he said.

The PSD/CDS-PP coalition won the elections on September 24, 2023, but was one deputy short of an absolute majority, a circumstance that led to the signing of a parliamentary advocacy agreement with the PAN's sole deputy.

“The legitimacy that was granted by the Madeirans and Porto Santos four months ago remains intact”, declared Miguel Albuquerque.

The Madeiran social democratic leader was speaking after the meeting of the PSD Regional Council, in Funchal, which analysed the political crisis that is plaguing the region, following a process that investigates suspicions of corruption in the archipelago.

Miguel Albuquerque was named a defendant and, at the beginning of the week, he officially resigned from the position of president of the Regional Government with the representative of the Republic for Madeira, Ireneu Barreto, with whom he will meet again on Monday 5 February.

“It is up to the political parties to propose a solution”, he said, and then reinforced: “What my party proposes is what has been unanimously approved here, is a governance solution with our partners in the current parliamentary framework”.

In this way, he said, the representative of the Republic should hear the parties next week, highlighting, on the other hand, that there are now no conditions to discuss the Regional Budget proposal for 2024, which should take place between February 6th and 9th, a period in which Two motions of censure against the Government would also be debated, presented by the PS, the largest opposition party in Madeira, and Chega.

Asked about the possibility of the President of the Republic deciding to dissolve the Regional Legislative Assembly after March 24 and call early elections, Miguel Albuquerque only said that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa “can make the decisions he sees fit”.

“I understand that there is, from the point of view of some parties, an eagerness to call elections”, he said, guaranteeing, however, that “the PSD is not afraid of going to elections, what the PSD has to do is ensure that the region does not become with a government under management until July, as this will be catastrophic”, as we cannot “execute anything.”

The social democratic leader also highlighted that the Regional Council, in which hundreds of activists participated, unanimously approved “the guarantee that the legitimacy that was granted by the Madeirans and Porto Santos four months ago remains intact”, highlighting that the parliamentary majority “is assured based on the position of the CDS and the position of the PAN” and has “all the conditions to ensure political stability and confidence in the region”.

“We have to present, at this moment, a governance solution for the region,” he said.

On the other hand, he added, it will be the party that nominates the name of the new head of the executive.

Miguel Albuquerque also said that he will leave the leadership of the PSD/Madeira after the next congress, which has not yet been set, and that he will not occupy the position of deputy in the regional parliament.

The resigning president of the Madeiran executive also reiterated that he was available to be heard in the process that investigates suspicions of corruption in the archipelago at “any time”.

On January 24, the Judiciary Police carried out around 130 home and non-home searches, mainly in Madeira, but also in the Azores and in various areas of the continent, as part of a process that investigates suspicions of active and passive corruption, economic participation in business, malfeasance, receiving or offering an undue advantage, abuse of powers and influence peddling.

Miguel Albuquerque was made a defendant and the then president of the Funchal Chamber, Pedro Calado (PSD), who has since resigned from his position, the leader of the construction group AFA, Avelino Farinha, and the main shareholder of the group, Custódio Correia linked to civil construction Socicorreia were arrested.

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