SIRESP president rejects favouritism claims over 94,000-euro contract as parliamentary hearing airs dispute
Major-General Paulo Viegas Nunes told a Portuguese parliamentary committee that the 94,000-euro contract awarded to a former colleague’s firm was justified by its NATO and EU certifications, while ex-official António Pombeiro repeated warnings of a ‘tarnished’ management record.
Defence of the contract
Paulo Viegas Nunes admitted during the hearing that he knew Leonel Simões, owner of consultancy Euritex, and had previously worked with him, but denied any favouritism. He stressed that he had never hidden from other SIRESP board members that their professional paths had crossed.
He and the company have NATO and EU security certification. They are called for various cybersecurity projects. It is very difficult to find candidates with this profile.
The major-general also noted there was no family relationship between the two, though they had collaborated on a NATO project.
A ‘surgically chosen’ timing
Viegas Nunes accused the former deputy secretary-general of the Ministry of Internal Administration, António Pombeiro, of orchestrating the accusations to coincide with his own re-appointment on 22 May 2026.
The allegations by Mr Pombeiro arise more than two years after the end of my first mandate. The surgically chosen moment coincides with my election for a new term, on 22 May 2026.
He further alleged that Pombeiro had leaked internal company documents of a reserved nature to the press.
Pombeiro’s testimony
Testifying before the committee, Pombeiro said he had nothing personal against Viegas Nunes and cited technical divergences, but insisted that the general’s record as a public manager was flawed.
In terms of public manager, I think the record should not be minimally tarnished, and I find that there is some tarnish on the general’s record while he was president of SIRESP S.A.
Pombeiro had resigned on the very day Viegas Nunes returned to lead the company, alleging serious irregularities in the earlier management period from 2022 to 2024.
The contract and the IGF audit
The Euritex contract, valued at €94,000, stemmed from a spontaneous application by the firm in 2022 and was later renewed. An audit by the Inspectorate-General of Finances (IGF) did not identify any illegality, recommending only better planning and procedural discipline.
Viegas Nunes maintained that the IGF report flagged only delays in two service acquisition processes, one of which involved Euritex, and that the core issue was the renewal of the original contract, not the choice of procedure.
Key milestones
The dispute stretches from the general’s first presidency to this week’s parliamentary session.
- Paulo Viegas Nunes begins his first term as president of SIRESP S.A.
- Viegas Nunes’s first presidential term ends.
- António Pombeiro resigns from the MAI; Viegas Nunes is re‑elected president of SIRESP.
- Parliamentary hearing airs the contract dispute and management accusations.
