The tax and customs authority started 137 disciplinary proceedings last year - against its own employees who accessed the personal data of taxpayers without any good reason.
This all started when the Prime Minister’s tax records were mysteriously released to an eager press which then raised questions over his payment record and personal accounting standards.
The cases were revealed in an internal audit, according to official sources at the Ministry of Finance; an audit which only seems to happen when the Tax Authority has become aware of violations of confidentiality.
The goal is to "defend the fundamental right of every taxpayer to tax secrecy," added the same source, but secrecy when it comes to the nation’s leader has led to a suspicion that he may not have been pulling his weight, justifiably so when it comes to social security payment record.
The Prime Minister claims to be "unaware" that he owed Social Security thousands of euros for work he did for Tecnoforma when self-employed.
There were 374,150 coercive actions for debt last year, with 1,468 people taken to court for breaking the law. The sum collected was €608 million from seizing bank accounts, homes and cars.
Passos Coelho said he did not know why he had not been sent a notification for the years 1999 to 2004 but luckily for him is able to wrote out a cheque for the amount owed.
Only in 2012, when confronted by a reporter who asked if he was behind in any payments, he admitted that he owed €2,880.26 plus interest which brought the total to €3,914.48.
The government said that the "situation of the Prime Minsiter was similar to that of more than 107,000 taxpayers" and that he "never had knowledge of any notification," so was "unaware of its possible existence."
This attempt at an excuse shows the system up for what it is, inefficient and devious as debts clock up interest while the debtor is unaware of their existence.
When exposed by the media, Passos Coelho decided to pay up a total of €7,430 to August 2004.
Passos Coelho said he was "perplexity by third parties allegedly being in possession of sensitive data" but missed the point about setting an example.
The Left Bloc spokesman Catarina Martins, said this weekend that it is a serious matter when a prime minister forgets to pay Social Security as he can afford it when many cannot.
Martins said: "I remember the Prime Minister's words that debts must be paid and we cannot be swindlers."
The Publico newspaper reported on Saturday that between October 1999 and September 2004, Pedro Passos Coelho has accumulated debts to Social Security and had agreed to voluntarily pay them off this month, a total of about €4,000.
The Socialists have asked for a "full explanation" from the Portuguese Prime Minister through its vice-president as the party could not accept Passos Coelho’s “lame excuse."
Comments
Yes, I know that the size of the cheating is relative, and the fact of cheating is an absolute. In the government, they must all be substandard in a moral sense. Lack of moral standard seems to be a qualification for being offered a government post.
Perhaps when the PS reassumes the reins of government, they will learn from the Sócrates precedent, and we might find both Portas and Passos Coelho imprisoned while investigations are carried out into their malfeasances.
Before we British crow about standards here in Portugal, let me say that the treatment of whistleblowers in our own NHS is shocking and immoral.
It is breathtaking to be following the segredo de justiça 'escape of secrets' farce with ex-PM Socrates and the Dono do Donos Ricardo Salgardo.
Making clear no one in the Portuguese justice system has the slightest idea of understanding what justice is about. Or if they do, in this abyss of sleaziness - do not speak out at miscarriages for fear of losing their jobs.
Which now swirls round the integrity of the super judge hearing their cases - Juz Carlos Alexandre.
http://www.publico.pt/sociedade/noticia/carlos-alexandre-teve-de-jurar-em-tribunal-que-nao-violou-segredo-de-justica-1687725?page=-1