Albuquerque will not leave even if he is accused

The President of the Government of Madeira, Miguel Albuquerque, a defendant in a judicial investigation related to suspicions of corruption, refuses the possibility of leaving his post, even if he is charged as part of the process.

“I will continue in office, I have no problem […], because, in conscience, I know who I am and what I have done”, declared the Madeiran social-democratic leader in an interview with the Lusa news agency, in Funchal.

Head of the island's executive since 2015, Miguel Albuquerque stressed that in the judicial process the accusation “may be subject to investigation and then there is a definitive accusation”, considering that some are “perfectly unfounded” and that “only by mistake” could he be accused of active or passive corruption in this investigation.

Miguel Albuquerque, who has a degree in Law and worked as a lawyer for a few years, added that “no two processes are the same” and that “reason opposes reason until evidence emerges and evidence only emerges in a final judgment”.

“This idea that the prosecution has a monopoly on the truth is contrary to the rule of law”, because “only in an inquisitorial process does the accuser already know that he is making the accusation and the conviction”, he added.

The island's ruler also said that “the facts in a criminal process are subject to a set of formalities that are not normally understandable to laymen, but which are the basis of the democratic rule of law”.

The president of the Regional Government assured that he was not heard by the judicial authorities, nor does he have any idea “at what stage the process is”.

After the PSD won the early elections on March 23, taking 23 of the 47 seats in the Madeiran hemicycle, and securing an absolute majority with an agreement with the CDS-PP, Miguel Albuquerque now expects the current legislature to last four years.

“We now have an agreement, as established, a government agreement with the CDS, the leader of the CDS is part of the [regional] government. In addition to this, we have an agreement within the parliamentary framework, we have a majority and, at this moment, we have all the conditions to govern”, he highlighted.

In any case, even if “there is no development in the process”, in politics “there are always contingencies”, he admitted.

The president of the Madeiran government was named a defendant at the end of January 2024, in an operation launched by the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Judicial Police in Madeira, the Azores and in several areas of the mainland.

Miguel Albuquerque is suspected of corruption, malfeasance, abuse of power and attacks against the rule of law, among other crimes.

The case also involves the then Mayor of Funchal, Pedro Calado, and the businessman from the construction sector Avelino Farinha e Agrela (head of the AFA group), who were preventively detained for 22 days and were later released with an Identity and Residence Certificate as a coercive measure.

At the time, the PAN deputy, with whom the PSD had reached a parliamentary influence agreement to secure the absolute majority it lost in the elections of September 24, 2023, withdrew political confidence in Miguel Albuquerque, which led the Madeiran ruler to resign, triggering early elections that were held on May 26, 2024.

In this election, the PSD/Madeira elected 19 deputies and only had the support of the two elected members of the CDS-PP, having governed in a minority until December 17 of that year, when the regional executive was overthrown following the approval of a motion of censure presented by Chega, which triggered an electoral process again.

On March 23 of this year, the PSD won the early regional elections by electing 23 deputies, coming one short of an absolute majority, which it secured with a government and parliamentary agreement with the elected member of the CDS-PP.

The Legislative Assembly of Madeira is also made up of 11 JPP deputies, eight from the PS