He was essential to affirm the PSD brand with Francisco Sá Carneiro, he died, he came back with force with Aníbal Cavaco Silva, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa’s “five thousand contos” saved him, served as the stage for the internal wars in the party, fueled the rivalry between social democrats and socialists, it was suspended, changed venue, format and almost disappeared more than once, it shook Pedro Passos Coelho, it became minimal with Rui Rio and now it should come back with force with Luís Montenegro.
The name of José Mendes Bota, former leader of the PSD/Algarve, is almost synonymous with Pontal, the man who organized 14 editions of the social democratic rentrée and “resurrected” it three times, does not hide the expectation for this year’s edition. “The 14th is an opportunity to Prayed for Luís Montenegro to show what mass he is made of. I hope that people return to Pontal. And that, as happened in 2010 with Pedro Passos Coelho, that the PSD enters a very strong phase”.
The new Social Democratic leader has this Sunday his first great test of political affirmation with the long-awaited return of Pontal’s party to Quarteira. An initiative that also marks the definitive end of the Rui Rio era and the beginning of a new cycle. To the chagrin of many, when he revived the act as a picnic for PSD militants, the now former Social Democratic president wanted to make a kind of “return to the origins”; Montenegro has other ideas: emulate Francisco Sá Carneiro, Aníbal Cavaco Silva and Pedro Passos Coelho and make Pontal a show of force – yours and the party’s.
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Source: Observadora
