“We never say it has been bought like your own money.” Igf spoke about the audit to TAP accounts and explained that he cannot demand document delivery.
The Inspector General of the General Finance Inspection (IGF), António Ferreira dos Santos, reinforced on Tuesday that the audit to TAP accounts shows a “Coincidence of values”rejecting that it was bought with their own money, and revealed that they did not have access to all requested documents.
“I think the report is very explicit when we say there is a coincidence of values and the facts we list are more than enough,” he began by underlining the person in a hearing in the Commission of Economics, Public Works and Housing, refuting, so , “Some conclusions that were even pointed out” based on the IGF document that “TAP would have been bought with the dog’s hairFor David Neeleman, he remembered.
In the audit, requested by Parliament, “we never say that TAP was bought as its own money,” he said, adding that “the 226.75 million eventually entered the TAP and were accounted for as supplementary installments.”
However, during the hearing, the official revealed that some documents were requested by the IGF that were not assignedand as the entity has no criminal investigation powers cannot require access to them.
“I cannot demand the information I want, I have to audit what they give me,” said António Ferreira dos Santos, giving as an example the contracts between Airbus and David Neeleman’s company, as well as related to those to acquire 22 , 5% of the airline’s capital in 2020, detained at the time of the consortium of David Neeleman and Humberto Pedrosa, Atlantic Gateway.
“IgF was not made available to the IGF underlying the upstream”he added.
With regard to contracts between Airbus and TAP private shareholders, the IGF official explained that the documents were not assigned by “issues of commercial confidentiality”.
To explain the deal, they were sent to the letter sent to the date to the parpublic and the government, in which the business that would become known as “Airbus Funds” It was justified by the “prestige” and the “longtime relationship” with businessman David Neeleman.
The IGF report on TAP, known in September 2024, states that Atlantic Gateway, consortium of David Neeleman and Humberto Pedrosa, acquired 61% of TAP capital, SGPS, “committing to its capitalization through installments Capital supplements, of which US $ 226.75 million (Musd) were made through the DGN Corporation (DGN) partner with funds obtained from Airbus. ”
That amount of capitalization, adds the document, “coincides with the value of the penalty (226.75 musd) assumed by TAP, SA, in case of non -compliance with the acquisition agreements of the 53 aircraft (A320 and A330), which shows a possible Causality relationship between the acquisition of actions and the capitalization of TAP, SGPS and contracts entered into between TAP, SA and Airbus ”.
The IGF suggested sending the report to the Public Prosecution Service especially taking into account the conclusions related to the TAP privatization process and its relationship with the acquisition contracts of 53 aircraft to Airbus in 2015, as well as the remuneration of the members of the Board. of administration.
On the last topic, IgF concludes that “available data” lead to the conclusion of “that the payment of remuneration to the administrators concerned [Humberto Pedrosa, David Pedrosa e David Neeleman] It was made through a simulated service contract (since apparently the end was not the same for which it was celebrated), presenting only as instrumental for the intended effect ”.
According to the report, this procedure “It seems irregular In the payment/receipt of remuneration to the members of the Board of Directors, who thus exempt the responsibilities of taxation in IRS and contributions to Social Security ”.
Government wants sale at 100%
The minister assured that the government maintains the position of selling 100% of TAP, but wants a “narrow dialogue” with the PS and is available to find solutions regarding the percentage to privatize.
“There is no doubt at all, [vender] 100% of TAP is our position ”guaranteed Pinto Luz, in response to questions of the liberal initiative.
The ruler rejected to condition his ideological options to the PS, but gave an example of the reduction of IRC, which the government defended, but did not advance due to the opposition of other parties.
“I have a maxim in life: all the useless effort leads to melancholy, […] The compass is our electoral program, but then of course we have to be available to find solutions, because it is better to move on than to continue it, ”said the minority minister led by Luís Montenegro.
Asked by the arrival, Miguel Pinto Luz said that the process of privatization of TAP is currently in “internal evaluation” and that the government will then publish a decree-law with the rules for sale, like what the previous socialist executive did , in December 2023, which was vetoed by the President of the Republic.
“We this time we want it to be as transparent and dialogical as possible”the Minister of Infrastructure bound.
On Tuesday, it advanced that the government is considering selling at least 49% of TAP capital in a privatization process that is expected to start in March and may be completed by the first half of 2026.
The government recently met with interested parties in the purchase of the Portuguese air carrier, as part of the reprivatization process prepared by the previous socialist executive, who wanted to conclude him in 2024, but was waiting for the change of government.
The three major European air groups-Lufthansa and Air France-Klm and IAG-publicly expressed interest in the business.
The infrastructure minister said the reprivatization would accelerate after the approval of the state budget in late November, adding that there was consensus on privatization, but not about the percentage to sell.
