Lisbon Municipal Police confiscate CHEGA billboard outside parliament

Lisbon Municipal Police have seized a political billboard erected by Portugal’s far-right CHEGA party outside parliament after officers said party members had illegally drilled holes into the pavement to install the structure without authorisation.

The incident prompted the Municipal Police to confiscate the canvas hoarding, identify those involved and launch administrative offence proceedings against the party.

According to officers at the scene, CHEGA activists damaged the public pavement by opening holes to secure the billboard’s support structure, despite not having permission to carry out the work.

The billboard featured an image of Prime Minister Luís Montenegro with his eyes and mouth covered alongside the message: “Portugal is burning. Chaos in the exams. Almada without water. Where is the Government?”

Following the intervention by Municipal Police, CHEGA members called Portugal’s Public Security Police (PSP) to the scene and filed a criminal complaint against both the Municipal Police and Lisbon City Council.

Speaking to Lusa news agency, CHEGA deputy secretary-general Carlos Magno Magalhães suggested the party did not require permission to display political billboards, claiming the right is protected under Portugal’s Constitution.

“A political party can place its billboards and political messages wherever it sees fit. This is an abuse of power,” he said, adding that he questions what is happening in Lisbon under Mayor Carlos Moedas.

The incident drew eight PSP officers and five Municipal Police officers to the site.

Despite the seizure, Chega returned after police had left, at around 1.30pm, and erected another billboard carrying the same message, criticising the government over Portugal’s recent wildfires, problems with the national secondary school examination system and the ongoing water supply crisis in Almada.

The administrative proceedings against the party remain ongoing.

All this comes ahead of next week’s State of the Nation speech, by the prime minister, and at a point where respected newspapers, like Expresso, are pointing out that the government is ‘unravelling’ and becoming increasingly closed in on itself, and unavailable to public scrutiny.

A polícia municipal de Lisboa, por ordem do Presidente da Câmara Carlos Moedas (PSD) impediu hoje o CHEGA de colocar cartazes na zona do Parlamento a denunciar a ausência e a incompetência do Governo a lidar com a falta de água, os incêndios e o caos nos exames. Inclusivamente… pic.twitter.com/XjUqxE3MdE— André Ventura (@AndreCVentura) July 10, 2026

Source: CNN Portugal/ Lusa

Natasha Donn

Journalist for the Portugal Resident.