Health Minister dismisses president of Aveiro ULS detained on corruption suspicions
Ricardo Correia de Matos was detained on suspicions of corruption involving the Order of Nurses and the Red Cross. Ana Paula Martins announced his dismissal with immediate effect.
President of Aveiro ULS removed following detention on corruption suspicions
The Health Minister, Ana Paula Martins, dismissed Ricardo Correia de Matos with immediate effect from his position as president of the Local Health Unit (ULS) of Aveiro, according to reports from observador.pt. The decision follows the detention of the official on Monday as part of an investigation by the Public Ministry and the Judicial Police.
Matos is suspected of having favoured the Order of Nurses and the Portuguese Red Cross in public contracts — notably construction works — in exchange for the construction of a dwelling in Praia da Barra, in Aveiro. The crimes attributed to him include corruption, economic participation in business, abuse of power and trafficking of influence.
In a statement sent to news outlets, Ana Paula Martins stated that she could not "in all consistency, fail to dismiss with immediate effect the head of the Aveiro ULS, one of those detained yesterday, 9 November, as part of a process by the Public Ministry, on suspicions of the commission of crimes of corruption, economic participation in business, abuse of power and trafficking of influence."
The minister invoked statements she made the previous day in an interview with CMTV, where she underlined that "trust and competence are essential for those leading institutions of the Health Ministry." Martins went further and acknowledged the existence of fraud in the National Health Service.
"I was emphatic in stating that there is fraud in the SNS and that with the Commission to Combat Fraud, a unit headed by Judge Desembargador Carlos Alexandre, together with IGAS, we are doing everything to combat it," she added in the statement.
Source: SIC Notícias