On November 7, Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced his resignation amid an investigation into alleged irregularities in the government's handling of lithium and hydrogen mining projects.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa. (Photo: THX/TTXVN)
Prime Minister Costa announced the decision in a televised speech after a meeting with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. Costa defended his personal honor, but said he would not run again for the position of Prime Minister.
Earlier in the day, Portuguese prosecutors indicted the country's Infrastructure Minister Joao Galamba and arrested Mr. Costa's chief of staff. The opposition has demanded the government's immediate resignation.
According to prosecutors, Mr. Galamba was investigated over the allocation of concessions for lithium mining contracts in northern Portugal, as well as in connection with a hydrogen production project and a data center to be built by Start Campus in Sines, a town about 100 kilometers south of Lisbon.
Authorities also issued arrest warrants for Mr Costa's chief of staff, the mayor of Sines and two leaders of Start Campus. The president of the executive board of Portugal's Environmental Protection Agency (APA) was also indicted.
The APA approved the lithium mining project in May and the hydrogen production project earlier this September. In a statement, prosecutors said the investigation focused on allegations of misuse of public funds, corruption and abuse of power by some politicians .
Some of the suspects questioned also mentioned Prime Minister Antonio Costa. According to the statement, a separate investigation into Mr. Costa is underway.
The information was released after media reported that Portuguese police searched the offices of Prime Minister Costa and several ministers as part of an investigation.
(Source: Tin Tuc Newspaper)
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