Alexandre Abreu leads coalition of BE, Livre and PAN

Economist Alexandre Abreu is running for Cascais City Council in the next local elections at the head of a coalition of BE, Livre and PAN, presenting “a progressive, ecological” and “democratic” political response to the current PSD/CDS-PP administration.

The current municipal deputy for the Left Bloc told Lusa news agency that the “intention is to provide a progressive, ecological, democratic political response to the PSD/CDS-PP municipal management, which has led the destinies of Cascais for 20 years” and with which “many people are unhappy”.

“There was a great desire for convergence on the part of the three parties, since the first contacts everything has always been carried out with a great spirit of collaboration, of partnership. (…) It is not just a coalition for mere electoral convenience to add more votes in the elections”, said Alexandre Abreu.

The associate professor at the Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (ISEG) highlighted that the Futuro em Comum coalition intends to “ do joint political work ” and, despite the “unique identity” of each party, develop proposals “at least in the horizon of these four years and, who knows, further ahead”.

Admitting that Cascais is not “the most favorable territory for the left and for environmentalist and progressive forces”, such as BE, Livre and PAN, Alexandre Abreu considered that many people “are unhappy” with “territorial imbalances” and a “social policy that leaves a lot to be desired”.

But also with “the environmental attacks in Quinta dos Ingleses”, with the construction of developments in Carcavelos and the “expansion of the Tires airfield, which has a very harmful effect on the quality of life of the entire surrounding population”, including in São Domingos de Rana, he added.

Alexandre José Germano de Abreu, 46 years old, was born in Lisbon and has lived in Cascais “since he was 2 years old”. He has a degree in Economics from ISEG, a master's degree in Development and International Cooperation and a PhD from the Faculty of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.

Researcher and member of the board of CEsA — Center for Studies on Africa and Development, he is one of the coordinators of the doctoral program in Development Studies at the University of Lisbon, member of the Ethics Committee of ISEG and member of the executive committee of the European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI).

His professional career includes periods in the research and analysis division of the Economist group, as an advisor to the Government of Timor-Leste and in the secretariat of the intergovernmental organization g7+ and he is a member of the editorial board of Mundo Crítico — Revista de Desenvolvimento e Cooperação.

The candidate hopes that those dissatisfied with the current management will see themselves reflected in proposals for “ a socially fair, territorially balanced council with respect for ecological values ” and “animal welfare”.

“Cascais has some of the most expensive houses and rents in the country, systematically the municipality, out of 308, is the municipality with the most expensive rents and housing prices, or in second place”, he said, regarding the main programmatic axes, in which housing “is an absolute priority” .

For the economist, “a much more robust political response is essential, one that does not just involve construction, although this is also necessary, but also regulation and prioritizing affordable housing”.

Another priority is land use planning, “with the rebalancing between the interior of the municipality, which is often forgotten, and the coastal part by strengthening mobility”, soft in particular, “but also free public transport”, also for those who work in the municipality “and not just those who live there”.

“Also including CP passes in this free service, but above all public transport that is comfortable, regular, that reaches everywhere, much more than until now”, he stressed.

The formal presentation of the coalition is scheduled for July 20, with the presence of Inês de Sousa Real (PAN), Mariana Mortágua (BE) and Rui Tavares (Livre), and the candidacy begins with a series of conversations with, among others, the conductor António Victorino D'Almeida, the activist João Paulo Batalha, the lawyer Ricardo Sá Fernandes, the musician Rao Kyao, and the biologists Fernando Catarino and Luís Cancela da Fonseca.

For the Cascais City Council, the Viva Cascais coalition (PSD/CDS-PP) is running the current vice-president of the municipality, Nuno Piteira Lopes, the PS is running the municipal deputy João Ruivo, the CDU is running the mayor Carlos Rabaçal, the Liberal Initiative is running Manuel Simões de Almeida, and the political consultant João Maria Jonet is running as an independent.

The local elections will take place on October 12th.