Africa-Press – Cape verde. João Santos Luís reacted, in a press conference, to the New Year’s message from the President of the Republic, José Maria Neves.
According to the UCID leader, the President stated that Cape Verde is concluding a historic cycle of half a century of freedom, democracy, and stability.
A fact that João Santos Luís considered “undeniable,” given that “the country has built a respected democracy and a functional rule of law.”
However, he observed that “democracy does not rhyme with extreme poverty, nor with persistent social inequalities,” recalling that “more than 100,000 Cape Verdean citizens live in absolute poverty, many young people remain without prospects, and many families struggle daily to secure the basics.”
“Celebrating democracy is important, but it is equally essential to recognize that there are citizens who still do not feel its benefits in their daily lives. Combating poverty and social inequalities should occupy a central place in national discourse and political action,” he said.
For João Santos Luís, the country could be in a better situation if, over time, priorities had been better defined and if the fight against social inequalities had been more serious, more structured, and more consequential.
The president of the UCID also expressed concern about the President of the Republic’s “intense island-hopping” in 2025.
As João Santos Luís explained, these trips often have characteristics that “raise legitimate doubts about the separation between the exercise of presidential functions and the preparation of a possible re-election campaign, using public funds.”
Therefore, he considered that the defense of democracy also involves scrupulous respect for institutions and the responsible use of state resources.
The UCID leader also recalled that the President, in exercising his powers regarding the pardon in 2025, “forgot about the political prisoner Amadeu Oliveira,” who has been in the São Vicente Central Penitentiary for almost five years.
“The President is perfectly aware of the conditions under which Amadeu Oliveira is imprisoned and, even in 2025, hasn’t lifted a finger to reverse this situation,” he criticized.
According to the same source, Amadeu Oliveira “is only imprisoned because he harshly criticized the judicial system in Cape Verde” and that, in the country, “no citizen has ever committed a crime against the democratic rule of law.”
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