Gouveia e Melo Campaign Denounces Lusa Report as "False News"
The Gouveia e Melo presidential campaign issued a statement on Monday denouncing as "false" a Lusa news agency report titled "Presidential Elections: Gouveia e Melo Reveals It Was Marcelo's Attempt to Stop Him That Led Him to Run". The campaign demanded "restoration of the truth of the facts", calling the report unacceptable for its lack of rigor.
What Gouveia e Melo's Campaign Claims
According to the campaign, Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo never referred to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa or any declaration by him as motivation for his presidential candidacy during the interview for the book "As Razões". They emphasized this could be easily verified on pages 123-125 of the book.
Lusa's Firm Rejection and Repudiation
In response, Lusa's Information Directorate rejected and repudiated the accusations that their report was false or that the agency contributed to disinformation and manipulated Gouveia e Melo's statements. They maintained their original story.
In a statement titled "Lusa Maintains Its News", the directorate concluded, echoing the campaign's note, that "in politics, not everything can be allowed".
The Controversial Article at the Heart of the Dispute
Lusa reported on Sunday that Gouveia e Melo decided to run for president after reading in Expresso newspaper that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa intended to block his candidacy by reappointing him as Chief of Naval Staff. The article in question was "Admiral Wants Two More Submarines to Stay in the Navy and Give Up on Belém", published on October 3, 2024.
Lusa cited from the book "Gouveia e Melo - As Razões", based on an interview by journalist Valentina Marcelino, deputy director of Diário de Notícias: "It was that article that made me set the course. Because when I read it, I got really angry".
The book is set to hit bookstores this Thursday and will be presented on November 24.
Gouveia e Melo's Stated Motivation for Running
According to his campaign, the decision to run for Belém came from realizing that the President of the Republic and the Government were not truly interested in defense matters, so he wouldn't have the opportunity to make a difference as Chief of Naval Staff.
They stated: "The candidacy for President of the Republic was motivated, above all, by the desire to continue serving Portugal actively and contributing to the country's destiny, in the face of a scenario of national political instability and international uncertainty".
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