ADN Candidate for Cascais Mayor Proposes Audit and “Cascais First” Housing Policy
Fábio Pereira, the ADN party’s candidate for the mayoralty of Cascais, announced this Saturday his intention to prioritize transparency by conducting a comprehensive audit of the municipality's accounts if elected on October 12. Pereira stated that a core principle of his campaign is to ensure “Cascais is first for the cascalenses,” asserting that public funds “must be well employed” as “the money belongs to the people and not the council.”
The candidate directed significant attention to the municipality's housing sector, advocating for a territorial plan that is “pro-Cascais and pro-habitação de Cascais.” He expressed concern that the council is losing its local identity. “We believe that Cascais has its roots, its history, its identity, its genesis, and we want to respect that,” Pereira sustained, arguing against a market exclusively catering to affluent non-residents.
In his remarks, Pereira was critical of the current development trajectory, stating, “Cascais não pode ser só para estrangeiros que têm capacidade de aquisição” who ultimately “comprar casa em Cascais.” He called for a shift in construction focus to serve “the population in general and not somente for a classe with alto poder aquisitivo.” This policy position, he argued, is a response to a municipality that has become overly “preocupado eventualmente com os ‘lobbys’ imobiliários e eventualmente com o parecer e não com o ser.”
A local political analyst, João Almeida, commented on the proposal, noting, “The discourse around housing affordability and the influence of foreign capital has become a central theme in the politics of the Lisbon metropolitan area. Mr. Pereira’s platform directly confronts these issues, which will likely resonate with a segment of the local electorate concerned about displacement and the changing character of the municipality.”
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Pereira also outlined plans to bolster the local economy with increased incentives for small entrepreneurs and a revival of “mercados tradicionais e do comércio mais de rua.” He also pointed to infrastructure deficits, such as the poor quality of roads, particularly in the São Domingos de Rana area, as a key issue his administration would address. The candidate drew a comparison with the neighboring municipality of Oeiras, which he claims has outpaced Cascais in development over the past two decades.
The current executive of Cascais, in the Lisbon district, is composed of seven elected officials from the Viva Cascais coalition (PSD/CDS-PP), three from the Todos por Cascais coalition (PS/PAN/Livre), and one from Chega. The upcoming municipal elections will see a crowded field of candidates vying for leadership of one of Portugal's most valuable and high-profile municipalities.
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