PASOK must remain “unwaveringly committed” to the Congress’s decisions, to the strategy of credibility, political autonomy, and the party platform, demanded Nikos Androulakis, speaking at the Political Council meeting that began late in the afternoon.
As expected, he attacked both Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Alexis Tsipras, even referring to an “organized effort by some to pave the way for Mr. Tsipras’s personal party.” Noting characteristically that “we will not be dragged along by the polls,” he stated that PASOK will not become a “bit player” in others’ plans.
In particular, Mr. Androulakis emphasized, among other things:
- There is an organized effort by some to pave the way for Mr. Tsipras’s personal party; we see that as well.
Without a political agenda, because obviously this mechanism is convenient; it doesn’t upset the balance and doesn’t create the sense of political change.
It is the same thing we experienced a few years ago with disastrous results for our institutions, the economy, society, and the political system.
Don’t they see this? They know it, but they are diligently trying to divert attention elsewhere—to communication, Barcelona, and various other issues—away from the real needs of the Greek people for affordable housing, good public hospitals, and good public schools.
- The prime minister knows that his credibility is at rock bottom. It therefore suits Mr. Mitsotakis to have his own lack of credibility compared and offset against that of his predecessor. It suits Kyriakos Mitsotakis to have a discussion that compares the present with what happened in 2015 and 2019. And not to compare the present with a better tomorrow.
That is why we must remain steadfastly committed to the decisions of our Congress and to the strategy of credibility, political autonomy, and the program that opens a new chapter for tomorrow.
Inflation and problems are multiplying. New Democracy does not want a rival party that can put forward an alternative proposal for power. It wants parties that engage only in rhetoric and populism so that it can demonstrate—through that rhetoric and populism—that there is no other proposal. “We are the only ones, and no one else can govern.”
- That is why, at every opportunity, they try to discredit our policy choices. I was very specific about the events of recent times. Was the decision not to vote for a third term for Y. Stournaras an isolated choice? Or did it stem from pre-conference and conference discussions, with society receiving a message from PASOK: that there must be rotation in the Hellenic Parliament, the European Parliament, and in critical positions of power.
Is this a social democratic trademark of PASOK? No. That is why, after all, there is no other example across Europe of a central banker who has remained in that position for nearly twenty years. The only example—outside the eurozone—is Romania. So it has nothing to do with Mr. Stournaras personally. It has to do with the fundamental principle of healthy rotation in critical positions with enormous powers. Therefore, instead of attacking PASOK, they should apologize. Why, in the constitutional revision, are they proposing a six-year term for the President of the Republic—a position that, under current conditions, holds no real power—yet for a position with immense powers, they allow three six-year terms and possibly even more in the future?
- We are a historic party, but also a modern one. We are a party with principles and values, but also a party ready to confront anything that seeks to create conditions of instability, weakness, inequality, and profiteering at the expense of society.
We must, therefore, highlight this legacy every day in public discourse and through our presence, and it is up to us to marginalize this staged political spectacle. Because it is a staged political spectacle. PASOK will not play any supporting role in this staged political scene; not out of partisan patriotism, but because we believe that political change must take place. And political change cannot happen with those who have never apologized for the games they played at the expense of the Greek people and those whose very core is riddled with corruption.
- All of you must fight this battle, from the front lines, with optimism.
Your presence on the airwaves and in local communities must instill optimism in our leaders and the ordinary people of PASOK who have stood by us through hard times; we must not disappoint them, because the decisions of our conference are clear. And the people of PASOK, as well as society at large, are looking for political solutions, not political matchmaking. People aren’t interested in political matchmaking.
They care about lower rent, better hospitals, better infrastructure, a functioning state, a functioning justice system, and political integrity and consistency. So let’s put the speculation aside. This is not the time for scenarios; it is time for battle and struggle at every level.
Starting today, the message coming out of the Political Council must be clear: we will fight for society, on behalf of society. We will not allow opinion polls and various actors in the country’s public life to drag our party into scenarios and theories, away from the real problems. We will fight for the real problems.
- That is why the struggle for political change must be waged with all our strength, with unity, and with a clear position and stance. The Congress has made its decisions; they are set in stone. Period. There is no need for misinterpretations, explanations, or asterisks that obscure the central message.
So stand by our program, our struggle, our credibility, and our political autonomy. Because these will be our comparative advantages against Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ New Democracy and Mr. Tsipras’s “IX” party. Because our real adversary is the problems facing society, which both of them have exacerbated and now they come saying: “Give us one more chance.” They’ve had plenty of chances. The time has come for the democratic camp, and it’s up to us to make sure the next national elections are the moment for the democratic camp*.