In an interview with Lusa, Manuel Machado, president of the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP), has called for more political power to be given to regions through administrative decentralization, believing that it will serve as an "opportunity for the modernisation of the state".
Mr. Machado proclaimed that the process of devolving powers to regional authorities has already made improvements, and that "more than 20 years after the referendum that failed to validate regionalisation, it is time to overcome the taboo" and to press ahead with reform of the state.
He argued that decentralization must be introduced "without any rush, with the quiet strength of those dedicated to the public cause who are interested in creating responses to give what is essential for communities."
The 1998 attempt to secure approval for reform through a referendum failed due to “the issue of sharing, of demarcation of border areas, of the maps” of the proposed regions, claimed Machado, who also happens to be mayor of Coimbra. He said that these issues “poisoned the process" and ultimately took away from the overall debate.
"With that time behind us and overcome” there are "the conditions to put on the political agenda a deep, fair and open debate that leads to the resumption of the process of political and administrative regions, in order for them to be created with all the care and with the powers they must have” he said.
He added that in his opinion, the potential reform could shake up the state, and serve as a move to “consolidate what needs to be undertaken in democracy."
Mr. Machado’s viewpoint is that the introduction of new administrative regions as part of decentralization reform should not throw away the existing regions– the North, Centre, Metropolitan Area of Lisbon, Alentejo and Algarve – but moves should be made to introduce "adjustments, which should be on the basis of as wide a consensus as possible."
He believes that it is in the interest of "all those who are concerned about what has, so far, been insufficient as a response from the government to the needs of the territories and the communities,” he argued.
In creating divided administrative regions, he added, it is "fundamental to clearly define who is responsible for what, who has the means to do what, who is answerable to citizens for public policies."
He clarified that the reforms won’t "increase public spending", since the staff, experts and other resources are already there in the various state bodies.
Moreover, he stressed that our current government is "a centralised state, which exacerbates public spending colossally.” The chaos generated by centralisation “is so much and such that they affect", for example, "the efficient use of EU funds" and "the efficient and timely response" to economic activities.
