PSD/Lisbon Accuses Assembly President of Political Agenda in Local Accommodation Referendum Controversy

PSD/Lisbon's Accusations

The PSD/Lisbon party has accused the president of the Municipal Assembly, Rosário Farmhouse (PS), of overstepping legislation and assembly rules, claiming she manages her role based on a political agenda. According to Luís Newton, president of the local PSD structure, this behavior is damaging the trust of Lisbon residents in the assembly.

Legal Controversy Surrounding Local Accommodation

This statement follows the Constitutional Court’s decision that deemed there were no legal conditions for a referendum on local accommodation (AL) in Lisbon, as proposed by a popular initiative. The court stated that the assembly was not authorized to proceed with the initiative without ensuring the validity of new signatures and obtaining an opinion from the Lisbon Mayor.

Critique of Assembly Leadership

Newton emphasized that this is a rare opportunity for the assembly president to provide a trustworthy and rigorous vision, but instead, she has been disregarding the law for political purposes. The court found that the popular initiative lacked effective control of signatures and that the questions posed were inconsistent with the legal framework.

PSD's Response to Court Decision

In their statement, PSD/Lisbon highlighted that the arguments presented by the judges had already been voiced by the PSD municipal group, which had considered filing for an injunction. They criticized Farmhouse's decision to push the referendum forward despite the evident lack of legal grounds, suggesting that her management is more about ideological defense than adherence to municipal regulations.

Call for Reflection on Leadership

Consequently, the PSD municipal group believes that Farmhouse should seriously consider her ability to continue in her role, especially with upcoming local elections slated for September to October this year. They assert that her potential resignation could benefit Lisbon's municipal governance.

Recent Assembly Actions

On December 3, the assembly approved the conversion of the popular initiative into a local referendum on AL, with support from PS, BE, PEV, PAN, and Livre. Following this, Farmhouse submitted the deliberation to the Constitutional Court, along with signature lists aimed at correcting previous discrepancies.

The popular initiative, driven by the Referendum for Housing Movement, proposed two pivotal questions regarding the regulation of local accommodations in residential properties.