Marking deadline extended by another 24-hours, but government plays down “fuss” over national exams

With the deadline for teachers’ digital marking of this year’s secondary school exams extended by another 24-hours, the governing PSD parliamentary leader has parachuted into the controversy saying he does not see what all the fuss is about.

Speaking to Lusa news agency about the State of the Nation debate later today, Hugo Soares said that “those who have nothing to contribute to the overall analysis of the state of the nation will probably use this sort of isolated case or circumstance” to make political capital.

Soares did concede that the new process of digitising 300,000 secondary school exams had caused “some difficulties”, but expressed “full solidarity and understanding for the disruption” caused.

He also criticised opposition parties: “We are talking about a three-day delay compared to what was planned (for the release of results). Quite frankly, and with all due humility, I do not believe there is any justification for the fuss that the opposition parties have sought to stir up over this matter,” he said.

To be fair, the fuss appears to have been generated more by teachers, their union structures and parents, than by parties of the opposition, who came into the picture after the so-called ‘difficulties’ had been denounced by the teaching profession.

Because today will be ‘all about politics’, Soares however sought to focus on the political aspects, accusing other parties of ‘exploiting this case to try and tarnish the image of education minister, Fernando Alexandre’, whom, Soares insists, “enjoys the respect of both the Portuguese people and the school community”.

Soares told Lusa that the digitisation of national secondary school exams “is a significant transformation for the education system, aimed at greater fairness and equality for students, and at making life easier for teachers”.

The fact that teachers have been working round the clock, due to technical contretemps is, in the government’s eyes, all part of a learning process.

Moving on to an overall assessment of the country’s situation, Hugo Soares maintains that both the country and the people – “which is what truly matters” – are better off.

“The Portuguese people know today that they pay less tax under this government; they know today that the Portuguese economy is growing at a rate above the eurozone average; they know today that, in terms of immigration, security and public services, we are clearly better off than we were before,” he listed.

He added that the government and the PSD have “demonstrated every week” a “great capacity for governance” and argued, “that the country wants this parliamentary term to run its course” (until 2029).

The PSD’s secretary-general also stated that “political stability is good in itself” and pledged to work “with humility and a strong capacity for dialogue to ensure that this can happen”.

Social Democrats will “continue to hold talks with both the PS and CHEGA” and AD – the PSD-CDS coalition – is fulfilling the mandate given to it by voters in the last general election, in May 2025, he said.

“What I would like to see is that we could often have the support of both,” he added, then accusing both the PS and CHEGA of “a great deal of childishness and immaturity” and of not being “prepared to govern” because “they throw constant tantrums”.

“When I speak to some, we cannot speak to others. When we speak to others, we cannot speak to those. It is often reminiscent of those primary school children who want to compete for the title of ‘best friend’ and who do not realise that this is what life is all about – we can have relationships with many people,” he concluded, calling for “maturity, responsibility and less adventurism on the part of the opposition”.

source material: LUSA