Due to serious communication issues during its co-government with the PSOE since 2019, the Portuense Citizen Assembly (ACP) has signed a document with the PP and CC to censure Mayor Marco González. The document focuses extensively on press, social media, advertising, and image policy of the new pact. This 25-page document places great emphasis on communication, even before detailing actions for each area.
The agreement is seen as a “political emergency” for the city and covers the distribution of areas, Mayor’s positions, the pact table proceedings, and budget approvals until 2027. Notably, communication policy was a point of contention between PSOE and ACP in the past, with ACP believing it had a significant impact on the 2023 results. ACP aims for a balanced communication strategy, distributing work and responsibility evenly among areas and councillors for maximum visibility using both internal and external means.
One key proposal is the creation of a “communication commission” comprising temporary staff from each party alongside the press coordinator appointed by the new mayor, Leopoldo Afonso (PP). This coordinator will not have a hierarchical relationship with the three press officers, who will handle social networks for their respective areas. All communication decisions will be made based on consensus.
The agreement also outlines guidelines for using the council’s official profiles and Telegram, ensuring that content and visibility of government partners are respected. Local media won’t be used for partisan purposes, instead, each party can promote their views on management through their networks post council dissemination.
A monthly meeting of the communication commission will evaluate metrics or content by area. The agreement mandates responding to social media comments (with removal of insults if necessary) and ensures that council communications won’t be altered without general consensus. In the interest of balance, a minimum of 25% press releases from each party per week are required across various platforms. A unified graphic style will be established for consistency, and institutional advertising and communication programs will be jointly approved.
In response, the PSOE highlighted similarities with previous agreements and criticized ACP for increasing advisors from 2 to 3, raising expectations within the city.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS
From page 10 onwards, the agreement delves into specific actions, including combating sea sewage discharges, providing resources to the council’s contracting department, hiring qualified personnel for the municipal archive, stabilizing the workforce, regularizing expired concessions, establishing a municipal integration company, and engaging an external legal service for advice.
