Porto, Jan 15, 2026 (Lusa) - Presidential candidate Gouveia e Melo accused André Ventura on Thursday of having "crossed the line" by wearing military camouflage, pointing out that the Chega leader did not even do compulsory military service and saying that he disrespected the Armed Forces.

Gouveia e Melo was speaking to journalists after meeting with members of the National Association of Young Entrepreneurs (ANJE) in Porto, after being confronted with the fact that his opponent André Ventura had today worn military camouflage that had been given to him by former combatants.

"That makes me very unhappy, because André Ventura never even did compulsory military service," said the admiral.

The former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces left a warning to the president of Chega: "You must be careful with the symbols you use; uniforms are for those who wore uniforms and served their country in uniform."

For Gouveia e Melo, André Ventura's act constituted "disrespect".

"As a military man, I didn't like it. I clearly say that there are things with limits. For me, this is a limit," he emphasised.

Speaking to journalists, Gouveia e Melo also criticised the Liberal Initiative's "attempt" to give the impression that Cotrim Figueiredo is the presidential candidate of the youth.

"There are ideas that are propagated in the media as if they were true. I have many young people in my candidacy, but then there are candidates that say they represent young people. But where is the proof that this is the case?" he asked.

The admiral noted that, throughout his military career, he had "always worked with younger generations".

"Every year, a generation of 18- to 20-year-olds joined the Armed Forces, particularly the Navy. I have always been around young people, I have always connected with young people, and therefore I have always participated in activities with young people," he said.

He then increased the tone of his criticism: "A campaign that claims to represent young people? That is arrogance that seems completely inappropriate to me. I don't claim to represent older people," he added.

Gouveia e Melo was also asked if he had met today with businessman Mário Ferreira, his supporter in this presidential race and the main shareholder of Media Capital, which owns TVI/CNN.

"I took a short break to attend a friend's birthday lunch," he replied.

Regarding the meeting with ANJE, the presidential candidate said he advocates "an economy with innovation, which is only possible with young entrepreneurs who renew themselves across different generations."

"Development is not only achieved by the state, but also by civil society and businesses. It is very important to encourage these young people, to tell them that if I am elected president, I will be on their side," he added.

Gouveia e Melo then warned that social cohesion is also necessary.

"When we are steering a ship, symbolically speaking, and the ship is making progress, we don't start throwing people overboard so that it can progress a little faster. The ship progresses with the people. And the people are part of the ship," he added.

PMF/ADB // ADB.

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