The Transparency Commission and the Statute of Deputies has approved a diploma on the criminalisation of unjustified enrichment that changes the legislation on the declarative obligations of politicians.
The committee considered a replacement text agreed by the parties proposing the nine bills (PS, PSD, BE, PCP, CDS-PP, PAN, PEV, Liberal Initiative and the non-inscribed deputy Cristina Rodrigues) relating to unjustified enrichment, concealment of wealth and expansion of the declarative obligations of the holders of political offices and of high public positions.
Most of the common text agreed upon by the various parties was unanimously approved. The PSD abstained from the article that states that failure to submit a declaration of income and assets, “after notification, is punishable by a crime of qualified disobedience, with a prison sentence of up to three years”.
On this point, deputy Mónica Quintela justified, in an explanation of vote, that the PSD abstained because "the intention was removed from the text", that is, "the intentional non-presentation of a declaration", something the party wanted to see in the law .
The Social Democrats also voted against the norm regarding “to omit from the statements presented, with the intention of hiding them, the increase in income, patrimonial assets or the reduction of liabilities, as well as the facts that gave rise to them”.
Mónica Quintela indicated that the PSD wanted the unjustified increase in income to be communicated to the Public Ministry, and not criminalised immediately, which justified the vote against, since it is not included in the text agreed between the parties.