When confronted by the journalist Carlos Daniel with the fact that Portugal had been overtaken, in recent years, in terms of GDP per capita, by almost all the countries that had joined the European Union after Portugal and had left of an economic level In lower development, António Costa began by throwing a smoke grenade and performing evasive maneuvers. Carlos Daniel, understanding (correctly) that his question was relevant, especially when he asked someone who had governed the country in the previous five years and had held various ministerial positions between 1997 and 2002 and between 2005 and 2007, returned to the post and Costa replied: “History explains it.” And he hinted that the matter was fixed: “What we have is to focus on the future.”
History has very broad shoulders and can explain a lot of things, but the phrase “History explains that” explains nothing, otherwise cheaters might turn to it when asked “Why did Brazil become independent?” What led to the Great Depression? or “How do you justify that the Renaissance originated in Italy?” However, prime ministers and prime ministerial candidates do not have the same obligations towards journalists and debate moderators that a student has towards a teacher or a knowledge assessment test, and António Costa avoided paying more clarifications in the past and refuge in the future.
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Source: Observadora
