PortugalThe Minister of the Interior stepped down nearly five months after his driver was involved in a car accident that killed a road worker while a government official sat in the back seat.
Eduardo Cabrita joined Prime Minister Antonio Costa’s cabinet in 2015 when the Socialist Party came to power and he has been repeatedly urged to resign since the fatal accident.
He refused to do so, and on Friday sparked a strong protest by denying any responsibility and told reporters that “I am just a passenger.”
However, after prosecutors formally accused his driver of negligent murder, Cabrita’s position became untenable, claiming that he drove over the speed limit when he was over 43 years old as a highway worker and he was the father of two children.
In his resignation speech, Cabrita said: “I regret this tragic and irreparable loss more than anyone else,” adding that he withdrew because the opposition party “utilized” his recent difficulties politically.
Cabrita stepped down Portugal prepares for early elections After the government failed to obtain parliamentary approval to pass its national budget bill, the president of the country called the meeting next month.
During his tenure as the Minister of the Interior responsible for overseeing firefighters, police and border services, Cabrita faced a series of scandals, including a Ukrainian man who was beaten to death by police during his detention at Lisbon Airport.
Another mistake was that in 2019, Cabrita’s department provided firefighters in the country with protective handkerchiefs that proved to be flammable.After a wildfire broke out in the central region, he became the Minister of the Interior Portugal More than 100 people were killed.
“I played this role in a particularly difficult context in this country, in the real situation of the country’s trauma,” he said on Friday. “Since then, I have been working hard to ensure that Portugal becomes a safe country.”
Soon after Cabrita stepped down, the prime minister told reporters that he had accepted the minister’s resignation and had communicated it to the president. He also thanked Cabrita for his work.
