The Ovar City Council approved the appointment of João Duarte to the position of Municipal Civil Protection Coordinator, on a fixed-term basis for three years. The municipal executive highlights that the new coordinator has over 30 years of experience serving in the Public Security Police, in planning, coordination, and command roles in the areas of security, risk management, and major events.
The municipality expects this appointment to strengthen the institutional capacity of the Municipality in the preparation, implementation, and monitoring of preventive and response measures regarding civil protection, in a context marked by the growing challenges arising from climate change.
The elected members of the Socialist Party accepted João Duarte's appointment with reservations, being more critical of the appointment of Miguel Silva, former president of the Maceda Parish Council, as Secretary to the Council Administration. The Socialists question how a Secretary to the Council Administration can perform duties in an organic unit that is not his support office and that does not even report to the councilors he should be assisting.
PS elected members also mocked the structure being created in Municipal Civil Protection, questioning how many people are needed to coordinate that area, despite acknowledging that the appointment has legal backing.
