Manuel Magno Alves, Chega deputy
The request was refused by Aguiar-Branco because the regime stipulates that authorization for travel must be given in advance. There are still discrepancies between the justifications for absences from plenary sessions.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic refused the request for subsistence allowance presented by the Chega deputy Manuel Magno Alves relating to two trips to Brazil carried out in September. The decision is due to the fact that the parliamentarian, elected by the Outside of Europe circle, requested authorization long after the tripsviolating the regime that requires prior approval.
According to an order dated November 10th cited by , Manuel Magno Alves requested authorization to process the subsistence allowances relating to visits made in São Paulo on September 25th and 29th, where he stated that he had participated in political work meetings at Casa de Portugalat the Portuguese Sports Association and at the Consulate General of Portugal. However, the request was only delivered on November 5th, well beyond the deadline.
The situation is worsened by a discrepancy between the reasons given for the travel and the justifications given in the parliamentary record. On the days of his travels, the deputy declared that he had missed work due to illness. In fact, between September 18th and October 17th, Manuel Magno Alves missed all 10 plenary sessions, always with a medical justification.
Aguiar-Branco justified the refusal because, since the review of the allowance regime in 2019, travel for political work requires prior authorization, presentation of the itinerary and proof of the activity carried out. These mechanisms aim to ensure transparency and prevent abuse in the use of public money.
Although the law provides, “on an exceptional basis”, for retroactive authorizations, Aguiar-Branco stressed that the deputy had already had a similar request accepted at the beginning of the year, when he requested late authorization for a trip carried out between January 31 and February 9.
Given the recurrence, Aguiar-Branco considers that a new retroactive authorization “distorts the exceptional nature of the regime” and compromises the principles of legality and equality between deputies.
