Former MEP Miguel Viegas runs for the CDU in Feira

Former MEP and university professor Miguel Viegas is the CDU candidate for the Santa Maria da Feira Municipal Council and this Friday highlighted the remunicipalization of the water supply service as his priority for the municipality.

Speaking to Lusa, the head of the coalition between the PCP and the Green Ecological Party says that this issue deserves special attention in a set of electoral measures whose “main priority is to combat the degradation of public services” in this municipality in the Aveiro district.

"The water supply will return to the municipality if the CDU wins the elections. Everyone needs to know that the capital of [the concessionaire] Indaqua has been disputed by several investment funds, and we cannot allow a basic necessity to be in the hands of private individuals whose sole objective is to maximize profits," he states.

Also a veterinarian, professor at the University of Aveiro, and researcher in the fields of governance and public policy, Miguel Viegas then advocates the need to combat the "asymmetries of the territory" of Feira, implement a "true municipal housing policy," and build "a new secondary school in the south of the municipality."

The CDU candidate also proposes to guarantee "regular public transport connections" between the various parishes in the municipality, increase mobility and parking solutions in the city center of Feira, and improve accessibility to major employment and service hubs in Aveiro and the Porto Metropolitan Area.

Noting that the remaining ideas in the CDU's electoral program are being "constructed with the people," particularly with regard to the environment and culture, the leader of the communist and environmentalist party summarizes: "We want to return the municipality to its inhabitants, placing social rights and public services at the center of local governance."

Born in Paris in 1969 and currently residing in Coimbra, Miguel Viegas graduated in Veterinary Medicine in 1993, after which he worked for various companies in the field for 19 years throughout the country. He later earned a bachelor's and doctorate in Economics from the University of Porto, embarking on an academic career at the University of Aveiro in 2010. "In between, he earned two master's degrees: one in Regional and Urban Planning from the University of Aveiro, and another in Sports Training from the University of Coimbra," adds the PCP's Feira Municipal Council.

Regarding his political career, the CDU candidate was a member of the Ovar Municipal Assembly between 2009 and 2013, and from there he moved on to the European Parliament, where he served his term from 2014 to 2019.

Miguel Viegas belonged to several associations in Ovar and is also a national leader at FENPROF – National Federation of Teachers.

According to the PCP of Feira, the CDU lists in that municipality reflect “a young and intergenerational candidacy”, in which the average age of the candidates for the Chamber is 42 years old and for the Municipal Assembly is 49, and with 40% of non-member candidates.

Regarding parity, the same source emphasizes: "We are proud to note that the CDU lists for municipal bodies are composed of a majority of women — 54% in the City Council and 55% in the Assembly — and it is interesting to note that 24% of the candidate lists for Parish Assemblies are headed by women."

In addition to Miguel Viegas for the CDU, in the local elections on October 12th, José Costa Carvalho for the PAN, Frutuoso Tomé for the CDS-PP, Filipe Honório for the Livre party, Eduardo Couto for the BE, Márcio Correia for the PS and Amadeu Albergaria for the PSD will also be running for the Feira City Council.

The latter is the current mayor of the municipality, which covers over 213 square kilometers and has a population of 136,000. He assumed the presidency in March 2024, following the resignation of Emídio Sousa to take up his position as a parliamentary deputy, and now leads an executive composed of seven elected representatives from the PSD and four from the PS.

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