The request submitted by the PSD following the approval of the request from the PCP parliamentary group to hear former PSD government officials was unanimously approved by the Committee on Economy, Public Works and Housing.

In addition to the former socialist Infrastructure ministers Pedro Marques, Pedro Nuno Santos and João Galamba, the PSD also requested that the president of the Court of Auditors, José Tavares, the judge-counselor who reported on the audit report on the privatization of ANA, José Manuel Quelhas, and judge Maria José Brochado be heard.

The former presidents of the Board of Directors of Parpública, Joaquim Pais Jorge and Pedro Ferreira Pinto, will also be heard.

The PSD parliamentary group considers these hearings "fundamental to clarifying the facts, political responsibilities and doubts that may remain about the privatization of ANA Aeroportos".

Last week, the PCP's request to hear former Prime Minister Passos Coelho, members of his government responsible for the privatization of ANA, the company's presidents and workers' representatives in parliament was fully approved by the Committee on Economy.

Thus, the former prime minister, Pedro Passos Coelho, the former Minister of Finance Victor Gaspar, the former Secretary of State for the Treasury Maria Luís Albuquerque, the former Secretary of State for Infrastructure Sérgio Monteiro, the president of the Board of Directors of ANA, José Luís Arnaut, the company's executive president, Thierry Ligonnière, and the organizations representing the airport management workers will be called to parliament.

Previously, the PCP parliamentary group had also submitted a proposal for the creation of an Eventual Parliamentary Inquiry Committee, "with the aim of determining the political and administrative responsibilities of the Governments and the Boards of Directors of ANA Aeroportos that involved the privatization of the company and its implications for the State and the management of the national airport network", but it was rejected with the votes against PSD, PS and CDS and the abstention of Chega.

"The Court of Auditors demonstrated that the sale of the company took place for much less than the announced value, demonstrated the promiscuity between the management of public and private administration, both in the privatization phase and in the private management phase. The Court also demonstrated that the prior evaluation, which was legally required, was not carried out, and that, in addition, Vinci was offered the 2012 dividends (71.4 million euros), when the company was public that year", the communists state in the request.

The sale of 100% of the capital of ANA Aeroportos to Vinci was concluded in 2013 by the PSD/CDS-PP government led by Pedro Passos Coelho, at a time when the country was being targeted by a financial assistance program negotiated between the 'troika' and the executive.

Read Also: Cancellation of privatization of Azores Airlines is "good news", says PS (Portuguese version)