Internal Strife in Iniciativa Liberal: Rui Malheiro Accuses Rui Rocha of Purging Opposition

Rui Malheiro's Accusations

Rui Malheiro, a former rival of Rui Rocha in the leadership race of the Iniciativa Liberal (IL), has made serious allegations against Rocha, claiming he has effectively purged internal opposition from the candidate lists for the upcoming legislative elections. Malheiro asserts that this move has fostered a 'cult of personality' around Rocha.

Recent Events

This past Sunday, the national council of IL approved the candidate lists proposed by the party's leadership. The lists feature Rui Rocha as the head candidate for Braga, Mariana Leitão for Lisbon, Carlos Guimarães Pinto for Porto, and incumbents Joana Cordeiro and Mário Amorim Lopes for Setúbal and Aveiro, respectively.

In an interview with Lusa, Malheiro, who secured 26.6% of the votes in the last national convention against Rocha's 73.4%, expressed concerns that the lists reflect a 'normalization' of political purging due to differing opinions. He criticized the lack of unity within the party since the last convention, highlighting that none of the members from his own proposed list appeared in an eligible position.

Critique of Candidate Lists

Malheiro pointed out that the current lists are dominated by individuals closely associated with the party's leadership or employees of the party, including the Secretary-General, who has taken an eligible position, replacing Patrícia Gilvaz, a prior deputy. He expressed disappointment over the discarding of valuable party members due to this cult-like atmosphere around the executive committee and its president.

Concerns About Representation

He also noted that there are no candidates under 30 in an eligible position, which is surprising given that the target electorate for IL is primarily within that age group. Malheiro lamented the lack of input from party nuclei in these elections, stating that the executive committee made all decisions centrally.

Moreover, he criticized the party's leadership for only submitting a document with programmatic lines for national council approval, rather than a full electoral program, suggesting this could lead to unforeseen issues as the program is crafted at the discretion of the executive committee.

Despite these criticisms, Malheiro urged dissenters not to leave the party, emphasizing the importance of contributing to IL's success beyond these elections.