MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Portugal’s Culture Minister Joao Soares resigned after saying on Facebook that he wanted to slap journalists, The Wall Street Journal reports.
"I don’t accept giving away my right to express my opinions," Soares stressed in a Friday statement announcing his resignation, which was sent to Portugal’s state-owned news agency.
In a Thursday Facebook post Soares said that he must find two newspaper columnists who were critical of his work to give them "salutary slaps," The Wall Street Journal said on Friday.
The columnists from the Publico newspaper recently criticized the culture minister for his arrogance and unethical work practices.
The culture minister has apologized for his Facebook post, but Portugal’s Prime Minister Antonio Costa said he would find him a replacement as calls for his resignation spread.
