Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 3rd, 2022

Presidency of the Council of Ministers

Eighth Constitutional Government

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Press Release

Meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 3rd, 2022

The Council of Ministers met, at the Government Palace, in Dili, and approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Defence, Filomeno da Paixão de Jesus, referring to the new Superior Council for Military Defence’s Regulations.

The purpose of this diploma is to make the Superior Council for Military Defence’s Regulations compatible with the National Defence Law in force, thus revoking Government Decree no. 6/2016, of May 11th.

With this amendment, as already defined in the National Defence Law, the Superior Council for Military Defence will be integrated by Generals out of active service who have served as Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym), Deputy Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (Vice-CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym) or Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMFA – Portuguese acronym), to ensure the transition and implementation of the development objectives outlined in the strategic documents of Defence. The meeting of this Council is also mandatory in matters concerning the amendment of the organic structure of the F-FDTL, the proposals for appointment and dismissal for the positions of Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym), Deputy Supreme Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (Vice-CEMGFA – Portuguese acronym) and Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMFA – Portuguese acronym) and the F-FDTL Military Build-Up.

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The draft Law Proposal, presented by the Minister of State Administration, Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, for the fifth amendment to Law 6/2006, of December 28th, which approves the Electoral Law for the National Parliament was approved.

The purpose of this project is to incorporate in the Electoral Law for the National Parliament the innovations introduced in 2021 in the Electoral Law for the President of the Republic, to maintain the harmonization of the rules regarding the electoral process of these sovereign bodies.

Thus, the new rules on the opening hours of polling centres, the permission for journalists covering the parliamentary election to vote at the polling centre closest to where they are working, the obligation for voters to identify themselves only using valid personal identification documents, or the establishment of the election monitor position, with functions similar to those of election observers, are transposed to the Electoral Law for the National Parliament.

Some improvements have also been made to the norms, clarifying that at the national tabulation meeting, the CNE makes the final decision on invalid votes and that the elements on the ballot paper include the order number of each candidacy resulting from the drawing of lots for the lists of candidates.

Lastly, one of the main innovations of the 2021 presidential election was adopted, the parallel voting centres, although with a new configuration. Thirteen parallel voting centres will be installed in Dili, each one associated with a municipality and the  Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA - Portuguese Acronym), where any voter registered in a geographical unit of registration located outside the municipality of Dili, and who does not wish to vote in his/her original voting centre, can register.

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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, also presented by Minister Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, for the third amendment to the Organic of the Ministry of State Administration (MAE – Portuguese acronym).

This legislative initiative is related to the need to establish a line of action and coordination between the Minister of State Administration and the Executive Secretary of the Technical Secretariat of the National Programme for the Development of Villages (Sucos) (PNDS – Portuguese acronym), to allow a greater and closer follow-up of the programmes and activities executed by the PNDS and its decision making. In this context, the Technical Secretariat of the PNDS is the central service of the MAE which, under the dependence of the Minister, is responsible for the practice of material acts necessary for the exercise of attributions regarding the management of the PNDS.

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The Council of Ministers approved the draft Decree-Law, presented by the Minister of Oil and Minerals, Victor da Conceição Soares, which aims to extend the validity of Decree Law 18/2022, of 19 April, which established the legal framework for granting a financial subsidy of an exceptional and transitional nature to reduce the economic impact of the increase in fuel prices to be allocated to public transport operators and purchasers of fuel for agricultural and fishing activities, until 31 October 2022. All other conditions for granting the fuel subsidy previously provided for, remain unchanged.

Given that the exceptional conditions for fuel price increases in the market remain unusually unstable, there is still a need for the Government to continue to support public transport operators and purchasers of fuel for agricultural and fishing activities, to mitigate the impact of these increases on such an important raw material for the development of the national economy, as is the price of fuel.

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The Council of Ministers decided to appoint the Minister of Petroleum and Minerals, Victor da Conceição Soares, as the representative of the State's rights, as a shareholder in the Timor-Leste’s Mining Company (Companhia Mineira de Timor-Leste, SA (CMTL)).

 The draft resolution was presented by the Minister of Petroleum and Minerals. This deliberation takes into account what is defined in Decree-Law 43/2022, of June 8th, which established CMTL, and determines that the State’s rights as a shareholder are exercised through the individual designated by deliberation of the Council of Ministers, under the proposal of the member of the Government responsible for the area of mineral resources.

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The Minister of Petroleum and Minerals also presented the draft resolution, also approved by the Council of Ministers, on the approval of the name of Eliud de Jesus Gomes, as Chairman of the Board of Directors, to be elected by the General Assembly, under the proposal of the member of the Government responsible for the area of mineral resources at Companhia Mineira de Timor-Leste, SA, following the provisions of Decree Law 43/2022, of June 8th, which established CMTL.

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The Council of Ministers decided to authorize the Minister of Finance, Rui Augusto Gomes, to start negotiating with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) the specific conditions of a loan for the project to supply drinking water to the western part of Dili.

Complementary to the other ongoing projects for the improvement of the water supply in the city of Dili, the Government now intends to mobilize financial assistance in the form of loans for the improvement of the water supply to the western part of the city. Given the project's characteristics and the funding required, the Asian Development Bank appears to be the appropriate counterpart to provide the funding.

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Lastly, the Minister of State Administration, Miguel Pereira de Carvalho, gave a presentation on the proposed calendar for next year's parliamentary elections. The legislature comprises five legislative sessions and each legislative session lasts for one year, beginning on 15 September and ending on 14 September of the following year. In the case of dissolution (early parliamentary election), the elected National Parliament shall commence a new legislature, the duration of which shall be increased by the time necessary to complete the period corresponding to the legislative session in progress on the date of the election. END

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