“In the MAI, those who obey the law are punished; those who feed inaction are preserved”

O former Secretary-General of the Ministry of Internal Administration (MAI), Ricardo Carrilho, pointed out that his dismissal was “an act of retaliation, and a warning to all who contribute daily to the action of the State”, considering that “in the MAI of Luís Neves, and in the current government, those who comply with the law and protect public money are punished”, but “those who protect the system and nurture inaction are preserved”.

“ This exemption was an act of retaliation, and a warning to all those who contribute daily to the action of the State: in the MAI of Luís Neves, and in the current Government, who complies with the law and protects public money is punished; who protects the system and feeds the inaction is preserved ", wrote, in an opinion article published in the Express.

Questioned by News to Minutes, the MAI office sent clarifications to a later height.

Ricardo Carrilho also pointed out that his exoneration, “camouflaged under the bureaucratic pretext of ‘printing a new orientation’, in the face of Decree-Law No. 43-B/2024, was nothing more than a hoax,” arguing that “the fact that this removal occurs at the very moment when the General Secretariat of the Internal Administration (SGMAI) achieved unique results, and without any parallel in the history of the MAI, confers on this decision a gravity that transcends the [your] personal sphere – is an attack on the rule of law itself and the moralization of governance”.

“ Over the course of 20 years of my career as head of Public Administration, I have invariably guided my conduct by the strictest legality, personal integrity and uncompromising defense of the public interest. I met different governments, served under the leadership of ministers from different political quarters, managed complex budgets and faced acute institutional crises. In two decades of first-line public service, i have never been the subject of so many illegitimate pressures and political interference as suffocating as in the period in which I performed the duties of Secretary General, under the current tutelage of Luís Neves“, he did.

From the perspective of the former responsible, the “raise of excellence left in the last 18 months” enters a paradox with its destitution, considering that its team “imposed an unprecedented macro-financial effectiveness dynamics”.

“I have strictly reviewed the law, and I have watched over the public purse, colliding head-on with the barrier of political interests, and the schemes of favoring installed in the shadow of national security. In July 2026, in strict compliance with the duties of my office, and with the state rationalization reform, I presented to the guardian a detailed proposal for organic restructuring. The most efficient scenario ensured an immediate annual saving of more than EUR 16 million to taxpayers by eliminating redundancies and merging the competences of SIRESP S.A., as well as the Mission Structure for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (EMFAMI) within the General Secretariat,” he explained.

The former Secretary-General shot on that line that your “true crime” was “propose the extinction of SIRESP SA, a public company that has become a drain of public money and a bureaucratic intermediary of luxury”, since “the determination to moralize the public service hit the agenda of Minister Luís Neves, who preferred to decapitate the leadership of SGMAI rather than have to dismantle the schemes of favoring and the clientelisms of SIRESP SA”.

This is because, according to an internal audit carried out by SGMAI, the body “receives from the State an average compensation of EUR 26 million per year since 2021, but the actual cost of the operation of the network is only 14.8 million”. The remaining EUR 11 million is spent on human resources, “including princely salaries for Boards of Directors (one president to earn €4,633/month, and three vowels with €3,706/month each)”, as well as on advice, lawyers and “luxurious office income in Saldanha”.

In addition, “the extinction of the FAMI Mission Structure, an autonomous structure that, due to pure incapacity for management, has integrated the restricted group of 11 bodies in Europe that has lost access to additional funding for their country, creating a financial hole in staff costs (in the order of EUR 5.3 million) that is currently being rescued by the State Budget”.

“The SGMAI proposed to absorb these functions at zero cost, saving EUR 5.2 million in management salaries. The guardian response to this savings proposal was my dismissal. While SGMAI produced and executed, the political guardianship kept in the drawer, for convenience, inability or political calculation, vital dossiers, which today put the country at systemic risk ", said.

Ricardo Carrilho also listed that his dismissal was carried out “in clear disregard of Decree-Law No 43-B/2024 itself, in particular his Article 10(2) according to which, with the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Internal Administration in the process of restructuring, by decision of the Government, the committees of service of the directors, in particular the Secretary-General, remain in force until the completion of the restructuring process (expected for the end of this year)”.

“ The privilege of having led an organization of excellence was not taken away from me by incompetence; it was taken away from me because the competence, transparency and refusal to bow to illegitimate pressures became incompatible with the current MAI. To remove a leader who delivers a plan to save EUR 16 million a year, which places the investment execution rates above 100%, and that clears the historical liabilities of the State is proof that merit and results are worth zero to the current government ", he accused.

Note that the MAI justified Ricardo Carrilho’s dismissal with the “reorganization of the General Secretariat, with the preparation of a new organic structure and procedures appropriate to the Ministry’s responsibilities, printing a new orientation to the management of the service”.

This removal takes place about four months after the Assistant Secretary-General of the MAI, António Pombeiro, has resigned from office, after being known the renaming of General Paulo Viegas Nunes to the leadership of the company that manages the Integrated System of Emergency and Security Networks of Portugal (SIRESP).

Luís Neves today appointed Maj. Gen. Nuno Parreira da Silva as Secretary General, who “takes office at a time of transformation of the service, with the preparation of a new organic structure and procedures appropriate to the responsibilities of this area of government”.

“ This process aims to adapt the General Secretariat to the functional and organic reform of the public administration, strengthen its management capacity and ensure the fulfilment of its tasks, in conjunction with the other public entities ", complemented the tutelage.