In a note released by the Presidency and signed by the former president, José Eduardo dos Santos claims that João Afonso is his personal doctor, who has been accompanying him for 16 years, in whom he has "the utmost confidence", and is "the only entity authorized to talk" about your state of health.
This position comes after one of the daughters, former deputy Welwitschia "Tchizé" dos Santos, denounced "abuses" and "conditioning of freedom" in relation to her father, who has lived in Barcelona since 2019, admitting that the family deals with "a police case", which may give rise to a complaint to the Spanish authorities.
"We, the children of José Eduardo dos Santos (...) those who, in fact, want to ensure our father's safety, our father's physical and legal integrity, are feeling powerless and we will only have an alternative is to call the Spanish authorities to intervene because this is a police case. The other alternative is to make all Angolans aware of what is happening", he said in statements sent to Lusa.
"Tchizé" dos Santos had previously questioned the Angolan doctor's intervention, as he would have told Spanish doctors that they were assisting the former president "to cancel appointments and not show up".
In the note released by the Presidency, dated this Tuesday, José Eduardo dos Santos says that João Afonso "will continue to be the coordinating doctor of the multidisciplinary team" that guarantees his "medical assistance in Barcelona", the document concludes.
In the last week, several media have reported a worsening of the state of health of the former head of state, which will be at the origin of differences between some of his family members and the regime.
Like his sister, businesswoman Isabel dos Santos, who faces several lawsuits, in Angola and abroad, "Tchizé" dos Santos has lived outside Angola since his father left power, being replaced in the presidency by João Lourenço, in 2017. , claiming to be a victim of persecution.
"Tchizé" dos Santos, who lost her mandate as MPLA deputy in October 2019, complained about threats and accuses João Lourenço of waging "a campaign of persecution" against him.
