Antônio Cotrim / LUSA
The Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcão Júdice
Rita Júdice reinforces that the long battle against corruption has not been won, but is confident that the “film’s story” can be changed.
A minister of justice knows that corruption It is a problem that persists in Portugal, it is known that the battle against this crime will be long, but it is confident that the “history of the film” can be changed.
In an article published in the newspaper, Rita Júdice warns that laws are not enough to effectively combat corruption.
And corruption, he reinforces, is a serious problem: “It erodes the foundations of democracy and the rule of law, affects equal opportunities, harms the economy, and reduces social cohesion. Corruption is like a disease: there are environments that encourage and nourish it and there are environments that prevent and combat it.”
“Corruption thrives on cronyism, promiscuity, secrecy, lack of information, lack of strong and independent social communication, encrypted language, unwritten social codes”, continues the minister, within the scope of the International Day against Corruption.
“But corruption does not proliferate where there are rules, demands, competition, civic sense, transparency, publicity and scrutiny of public decisions.”
Therefore, the Minister of Justice recalls six key measures in the Anti-Corruption Agenda, approved in June by the Council of Ministers.
The first focus is prevention: regulate the lobby and increase the functionalities of the BASE – Online Public Contracts portal.
The second key point is to introduce a new dynamism in local administration, reinforcing the institutional framework for inspections, evaluations and regular audits, focusing on public procurement, urban planning and the management and administration of local bodies.
The National Anti-Corruption Mechanism (MENAC) will have a new governance structure, as the current one is “excessively centered on the President”.
The National Strategy for Education for Citizenship there will be a framework dedicated to promoting ethics and integrity; The new content should reach schools in the next academic year.
The Government will present a new mechanism for confiscation of assets: “Our insurmountable line”, in addition to the digitalization and dematerialization of the criminal investigation phase, which began last week.
And, at the beginning of 2025, a working group will be created to prepare a proposal to change the Code of Criminal Procedure, in order to promote procedural speed and the effectiveness of criminal justice, particularly in the context of mega-processes.
