<![CDATA[ Gouveia e Melo foi presidenciável campeão de "audiência" na Universidade de Lisboa ]]>

Three proto-candidates and two declared candidates for the Presidency of the Republic passed through the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon as part of the SEDES (Association for Economic and Social Development) Jovem congress . Among Marques Mendes, Mariana Leitão, António José Seguro, António Vitorino and Henrique Gouveia e Melo, it was the admiral who attracted the largest audience.

Those who attended the various sessions told SÁBADO that the admiral's session had "a very strong turnout". The room was full and people had to stand to watch. When asked by journalists how he had heard the welcome that presidential candidates Marques Mendes and Mariana Leitão had given him the day before for the "presidential marathon", he replied: "Well, they welcomed me, that doesn't mean I've made it to the presidential campaign". "There's plenty of time to decide, plenty of time to reflect, there's no need to rush. And today I'm making my own way. I've just left the Armed Forces, I took some time to distance myself from the Armed Forces and I'm speaking out in the public space with my opinion", he said.

According to the newspaper Observador , Gouveia e Melo interacted with several students from the University of Lisbon before participating in the panel "Portugal's role in the world". Also participating in the discussion was the vice-president of the Assembly of the Republic and president of the NATO Assembly, PS deputy Marcos Perestrello.

He was against the imposition of Compulsory Military Service and against the suppression of social expenses to compensate for the increase in Defense spending (despite defending cuts of 0.5% in the Social State to reinforce the Defense Budget).

Marques Mendes, Mariana Leitão and António José Seguro chose to attack proto-candidate Gouveia e Melo for the way he said he would dissolve the Assembly of the Republic if the Government did not fulfil its electoral promises. They also attacked his tirades against candidates with political party ties. António Vitorino preferred to spare Gouveia e Melo and attack populism. Leitão and Seguro also targeted populists and the far right.

Last Friday, Gouveia e Melo wrote an opinion piece in the weekly Expresso , entitled "Honoring Democracy", in which, without ever assuming a candidacy for Belém, he explains his vision on the role of the President of the Republic, arguing that he should be "exempt and independent of party loyalties".

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