The president of the Lisbon City Council spoke to journalists in the Coruchéus Atelier Complex in Lisbon, at the end of a press conference to present the 7th ARCOlisboa - International Contemporary Art Fair, which will take place from 23rd to 26th May at the Cordoaria Nacional.

"When this change in the council took place, it never crossed my mind that Culture would be given to a councillor. Culture will have to be centralised in my person," said the mayor when asked about the announcement of the assumption of the portfolio, after the suspension of the mandate of councillor Diogo Moura, who will be replaced by Joana Oliveira Costa, who has not yet been given any portfolios, according to a source from the council.

Councillor Diogo Moura (CDS), who was responsible for Culture at the Lisbon City Council, suspended his mandate last week, at the request of the mayor, days after being formally accused by the Public Ministry of the crime of fraud in two internal elections of the Christian Democrats.

"It is with great naturalness and commitment that I will also be the councillor for Culture," stressed Carlos Moedas to journalists, recalling: "I was the first candidate, at the time, for the Lisbon council, to have as the first priority of all - and I was criticised for this - the proposal for the programme 'A Theatre in Each Neighbourhood'."

"I spoke about Culture before others. It is central to my project," stressed the mayor of Lisbon today.

In a written statement sent to Lusa on Sunday, Carlos Moedas revealed that he asked Diogo Moura "to suspend his mandate, a request to which he immediately agreed".

On Wednesday, the social democratic mayor explained that, "despite the allegations that are imputed [to Diogo Moura] not referring to the mandate as a councillor", he considered "there were no conditions" for him to continue "to carry out his work for the benefit of the people of Lisbon".

The mayor praised "the excellent work, commitment and dedication" of Diogo Moura over the last two and a half years as a councillor, "in areas such as Innovation, Economy and Culture". His portfolios also included Relations with the Parish Councils, Public Space, Supplies and Markets, the "Lojas com História" Programme and the Participatory Budget.

A source from the municipality told Lusa on Wednesday that the inauguration of Joana Oliveira Costa will take place today and that the portfolios of the mayor, who has been a substitute councillor since 2021, will be made public "in due course".

Joana Oliveira Costa, from the CDS-PP, has been vice-president of the party's Lisbon Municipal Political Commission since 2022 and is a student of the Law degree at the Catholic University of Lisbon.

The Public Ministry accused Diogo Moura, who is also vice-president of the CDS-PP, of "two crimes of fraud in elections, aggravated", for allegedly having tried to manipulate the votes of members in two electoral acts (2019 and 2021), reported CNN Portugal on Thursday.

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