Questioned by Lusa about complaints from Portuguese registered in Angola, who are unable to contact the consulate in that country by email or telephone, SECP notes that "any difficulties or delays in contact will be associated with the significant increase in requests and requests for information received by consulates" following the government's announcement to suspend flights.
"In order to cope with these increasing requests, posts have been instructed to strengthen their response to requests for support from nationals affected by the suspension of travel to the detriment of other consular acts," the note sent to Lusa points out.
The SECP office also states that the Portuguese Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Augusto Santos Silva, "has given instructions to all posts in the diplomatic and consular network to focus all efforts on responding to and supporting national citizens affected directly or indirectly" by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The note also clarifies that a Covid-19 emergency line has been established and that the Consular Emergency Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been strengthened.
Several Portuguese and Portuguese-Angolan citizens on Wednesday expressed their frustration and discontent with the lack of response from Portuguese entities such as the Portuguese consulate and the airline TAP.
The Consulate-General of Portugal in Luanda on Tuesday suspended the receipt of indefinite visa applications as part of measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
