Reintegration allowance for politicians in Cape Verde: illegal? No. Immoral? Maybe.

What is the reintegration allowance anyway?

(...) The reintegration allowance was created with the aim of supporting political office holders - such as MPs, ministers, mayors and other senior officials - in the period immediately following the end of their mandate. The logic behind this mechanism is simple: those who hold political office, often on an exclusive basis, may lose their previous professional ties and face difficulties in re-entering the job market.

In this way, the state guarantees temporary financial compensation, allowing for a "dignified transition" between holding public office and returning to professional life.

From a legal point of view, the allowance is enshrined in specific legislation and approved by the National Assembly. So it's not an illegal privilege or a hidden expedient. It's in the law, it's been voted on and promulgated.

So where does the problem begin?

The problem arises when the letter of the law clashes with the social reality of the country.

Cape Verde is a country marked by:

• Low average salaries;
  

• high youth unemployment;
  

• workers who, on losing their job, have no reintegration allowance;
  

• pensioners living on insufficient pensions;
  

• families that depend on minimal social support to survive.
  

In this context, seeing politicians - many of whom already have well-established careers, their own businesses, guaranteed pensions or secured party positions - receiving large allowances after leaving public office causes outrage. Not because it's illegal, but because it seems profoundly disconnected from the reality of ordinary citizens.

Legality is not synonymous with morality

Here lies the crux of the argument. Legality answers the question: "is this allowed?". Morality answers another, far more demanding question: "is this fair?".

A member of parliament who holds office for a few years and, when he leaves, receives an allowance equivalent to several minimum wages, while thousands of Cape Verdeans work for decades without any similar protection, raises legitimate questions about fairness and social solidarity.

Even more serious is when:

• the allowance is accumulated with other sources of income;
  

• the beneficiary returns immediately to another public or political office;
  

• The support is no longer transitory but becomes a real exit prize.
  

In these cases, the subsidy ceases to fulfill its original purpose and comes to be perceived as a political class privilege, feeding distrust in democratic institutions.

The impact on public confidence

Democracy thrives on trust. When citizens feel that sacrifices are always demanded of them - workers, young people, emigrants, small business owners - while the political class protects itself, that trust deteriorates.

The reintegration allowance, as it exists today, has become a symbol of this fracture between the governors and the governed. Even though it is legal, it conveys the idea that there are two Cape Verts:

1. the Cape Verde of those who govern, with solid safety nets;
   

2. The Cape Verde of those who live from day to day, without a financial cushion.
   

Retire, don't abolish?

Recognizing the potential immorality of the subsidy does not mean advocating its outright elimination. There may be room for deep reform, making the mechanism fairer and more in line with national reality. Some frequently debated ideas include:

• limiting the value of the subsidy;
  

• reduce the allocation period;
  

• prevent accumulation with other public income;
  

• make access conditional on proof of actual need;
  

• to bring the regime closer to what exists for ordinary workers.
  

Measures of this kind could preserve the legality of the institute, but give it back its social legitimacy.

Conclusion: the law protects, ethics judges

The reintegration allowance for politicians in Cape Verde is not illegal. That is out of the question. But in a country where the majority struggle to survive without any guarantees, it is legitimate to ask whether this benefit is morally acceptable, as it is designed.

Politics should not only be the exercise of power within the law, but also a commitment to example, social justice and empathy. When the political class ignores this ethical dimension, even legal acts come to sound offensive.

And maybe that's the real problem: not the illegality of the subsidy, but the growing distance between politics and the people it should serve.

Legal provision

In Cape Verde, there is legal provision for a reinstatement allowance in certain cases of termination of public office (including local political office), which is regulated in a specific statute:

Legal basis: Decree-Law no. 2/96, of February 5

This is the main law governing the reintegration allowance (Subsídio de Reintegração):

Who is entitled:

• The Mayor and full-time councillor who definitively leave office, provided they have been in office for at least one year. reformadoestado.gov.cv
  
  

When you are not entitled:

• If you cease to hold office due to the loss or resignation of your mandate, except in specific situations (e.g. resignation due to proven impeding illness, candidacy for another incompatible office, or assumption of another incompatible office). reformadoestado.gov.cv
  

Benefit amounts:

• 6× basic remuneration for the position - if you have completed at least one term of office.
  
  

• 4× basic pay - if you have been in office for more than 2 years but less than one term.
  

• 2× base pay - if you've been in for two years. reformadoestado.gov.cv
  

This decree-law applies mainly to municipal executive positions (president and councillors with exclusive dedication), and not to all politicians in general (e.g. national deputies, members of the Government or President of the Republic), although there are general references to allowance rights for political office holders in the basic legislation (Statute of Political Office Holders - Law no. 85/III/90).º 85/III/90). reformadoestado.gov.cv

Estatuto dos Titulares de Cargos Políticos (Lei n.º 85/III/90)

• This statute defines the rights, benefits and regime of political office in general.
  

• Provided that the President of the Assembly, Members of Parliament, the Prime Minister, Ministers, etc., when they leave office, "shall be entitled to receive an allowance from the State, under the terms of the law".
  

• However, this law refers to specific legislation on the amounts and conditions of this subsidy (which in the case of municipal reinstatement is Decree-Law no. 2/96). reformadoestado.gov.cv
  

Important: legislation on this topic may evolve, and the concrete details of the amounts or application to national positions may depend on subsequent diplomas or specific budget laws.

Note

There has been public debate and ethical controversy in Cape Verde over the allocation of this allowance - for example, President José Maria Neves has clarified that he has never received the allowance despite having this legal right at some points in his career.

If you want, I can find the full official text of Decree-Law no. 2/96 or check if there are more recent laws that have changed this regime in relation to national politicians (MPs, ministers, etc.).