According to the president of the union of inspectors, SEF has not admitted inspectors for 12 years and that the service is “aged” and “on the verge of collapse. He also accused “other police forces” of wanting to absorb the service.

This was stated on Friday 29th May by the president of the Association of Research and Control Career (SCIF), the opening of the XVIII Congress of the union in Lisbon. According Acacio Pereira, the SEF currently has 714 inspectors with an average age of 42 years. “These are few professionals who, day and night, every day of the year, have to control all seaports, land and air borders in continental Portugal and islands, while developing research and prevention activities,” he added.

The President of SCIF complained of “disinvestment” in government service – a policy, illustrated recently with the suspension of participation of SEF in the missions of the European agency Frontex due to a “absolute and complete lack of human resources.” Acacio Pereira attributes the lack of investment, will mean “other police forces will have to absorb an excellent service; a step that he warns, is “wrong” of the efficacy point of view. “If the SEF, which is a modern force, efficient,
technologically capable and financially sustainable, generating 60% of revenues for their expenses, is absorbed by larger forces, all its qualities will be diluted with greater inefficiency.

A former Minister of Internal Affairs, Rui Pereira, who attended the Congress, admitted that when he reached the government he had the “intention to extinguish” SEF, but “I was completely against. It’s  bad idea and would create disorder in the internal security system”.

The XVIII Congress of the union SEF inspectors was held last Friday at the Institute of Social and Political Sciences.