Coutinho confirms Portuguese parliamentary bid

José Pereira Coutinho

Lawmaker José Pereira Coutinho has confirmed that he will be running in the Portuguese parliamentary elections this coming October, heading the political party “Nós, Cidadãos! (We, Citizens!)”. Coutinho is running under the electoral circuit outside Europe.
The Portuguese Parliament today comprises 230 lawmakers, four of which are elected under electoral circuits in European countries and outside Europe. Members are elected for a four-­year term representing the country’s 22 constituencies.
According to bid announcements released recently, Coutinho is seeking to win a seat in the Portuguese Parliament (AR) and is running to represent the “former overseas province of Macau.” The contact details and address provided for the bid announcement are those of the Macau Civil Servants Association, where he serves as president.
Coutinho is also running in the Council of the Portuguese Communities (CCP) elections that are due to take place on September 6. The CCP, of which Coutinho is a member, is the Portuguese government’s advisory body on emigration and all matters relating to the Portuguese communities abroad.
Gilberto Carlos Conceição Camacho is listed as his number two candidate in the bid for the Portuguese Parliament and for the CCP.
“We believe it’s time for someone to voice Portuguese communities’ concerns in Lisbon. We want their hopes, wishes, and demands to have a voice. We are also looking to ensure that promoting the Portuguese language and culture abroad is seen as a priority by [the government] in Lisbon,” Coutinho informed the Times earlier this month.
Running under the electoral circuit outside Europe, the lawmaker has explained that if he wins a seat in the Portuguese Parliament, he is not required to stay permanently in Lisbon. Instead, he could travel to different countries in which Portuguese communities are based to learn about their concerns.
The president of Macau’s Legislative Assembly (AL), Ho Iat Seng, has previously commented on Coutinho’s intent to run for the Portuguese Parliament, saying that this “is a diplomatic matter.” He also stressed that lawmakers in the AL were required to swear an oath of loyalty to the People’s Republic of China. MDT/Lusa