The government intends to re-apply the rules that allowed the counting of those who held government positions and jobs, this time for retirement or retirement purposes, as well as guarantees when resuming their professional jobs after leaving the executive authority.
According to a proposed law submitted to the Council of the Republic ten days ago, the executive authority proposes to reinstate a decree law dating back to 1979, that is, before the amendment to the 1982 Constitution began to explicitly provide guarantees for those who resumed their professional jobs after holding government positions. This decree law was repealed in 2018 as part of a strategy to “clean up” outdated certificates.
But the expiration of this decree law raised “interpretive doubts” about granting the system to former government officials who return to their professional positions, as the executive authority acknowledged in the draft law approved by the Council of Ministers on September 7. Although the article of the Constitution relating to the right to access public office stipulates since 1982 that “no one may be harmed in his position, work, professional life, or social benefits to which he is entitled, as a result of exercising political rights or performing a public function.”
Thus, the aim is to bring into force the 1979 text, which at that time was signed by María de Lourdes Pentacelgo and issued by Ramalho Inés. It stipulates that “Members of the Government shall not be prejudiced in the course of their appointment or permanent employment, as well as to the social benefits to which they were formerly entitled, in the exercise of their functions, and shall, however, during the same period, cease all professional activities, public or private, for which “They were doing it when they took office.”
The same certification also stated (and will do so again) that “the performance of duties as a member of the government shall count toward time of service rendered in the original office or activity for all purposes, except those presuming the effective exercise of the office.” Professional activity.” In cases where this activity is subject to an expiration date – for example, if it is a fixed-term contract or an appointment for a fixed-term mandate – the assumption of office as a member of the government suspends the account in question.
The original version of this decree law also extended all of these conditions to include members of the armed forces.
To give meaning to this rule, it is also necessary to reconsider a paragraph of another law passed in 1985 on the status of wages for holders of political offices, from the Cavaco Silva government, which explicitly states that “the time spent holding political offices shall be counted for one year.” Retirement or retirement purposes.”
In response to a question from PÚBLICO about the predictable world of people that could be covered by this case, the Office of the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs admitted that “the possible world is relatively large, but it is not yet possible to count it.”
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