The list of sector heads announced yesterday by Alexis Tsipras’s Greek Left Coalition (ELAS) confirmed the core commitment made by his associates even before the party was founded: this is not “SYRIZA 2”; it does not include “historic” figures from left-wing organizations, and party “seniority” was not a factor in their selection.On the contrary, the overwhelming majority of its members come from active professional and academic fields—whether they are lawyers, doctors, and university professors, or active businesspeople, economists, and artists.
The presence of Fragiskos Koutentakis at the helm of the Economics sector guarantees, as it is said, “a fully costed and realistic economic program” that Mr. Tsipras will present in Thessaloniki in September.
Even the few figures coming from SYRIZA belong to its younger generation (Dionysis Temboneras, Giorgos Vassiliadis, Grigoris Theodorakis, Pausanias Papageorgiou), while the inclusion of figures who recently left PASOK caused quite a stir: George Boulbasakos, Antonis Saoulidis, Marizeta Antonopoulou, and Marinos Skandamis, who left the “green” ranks just… the day before yesterday.
The emphasis is on active businesspeople, as, according to ELAS officials, they constitute a strong and distinct core of individuals with direct experience in the economy—specifically in production, investment, and business—and demonstrate the new party’s “grounded” connection to the market.
“These are business executives—people from the fields of production, investment, tourism, shipping, logistics, energy, and entrepreneurship—who have taken on roles as sector heads or deputy sector heads within ELAS in critical sectors, such as rural development, trade, tourism, industrial production, shipping, digital policy, and finance,” sources from Amalia point out.
The following individuals are mentioned:
-Dimitris Dafopoulos: a Greek entrepreneur with diverse activities in the sectors of FMCG, brand development, hospitality, and cybersecurity. He distinguished himself as a co-founder of Three Cents, a Greek premium mixer company that managed to establish a presence in more than 40 countries and was acquired by Coca-Cola HBC, serving as a prime example of a successful Greek brand with international reach.
At the same time, he actively participates in the strategic development of the Greek natural mineral water company Dirfys as a member of its Board of Directors.
-Dimitris Salpeas: After completing his studies (Maritime Finance in London), he worked in the private sector and subsequently joined the management of SALFO & Associates SA, an engineering consulting firm co-founded by his father.
Today, he is a shareholder and member of the board of directors of the company, which has established an international presence in infrastructure, energy, urban planning, and real estate development projects.
Beyond Greece, SALFO maintains a presence in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, and Cyprus, while also operating in countries across Southeast Europe.
-George Konstantinidis: A business executive with more than 25 years of experience in the fields of tourism, strategic investments and development, real estate, and business management.
He has served as CEO, a member of boards of directors, and a senior executive at Greek and international companies, with significant experience in strategic planning, corporate governance, investment development, and the management of complex development projects.
-Thomas Moschos: After completing his studies in Greece, Bulgaria, and Germany, he and his brother Christos—fifth-generation livestock farmers—are co-owners of the vertically integrated livestock farm “Moschos Farm,” where they cultivate 1,180 stremmata and raise 1,200 sheep and goats.
They process their own products at the farm’s cheese factory and supply specialty stores in Greece and abroad.
He serves as a technical advisor to the Hellenic Livestock Association and as Greece’s ambassador to Copa Cogeca for milk and dairy products. In 2023, he was awarded the title of Best Organic Farmer in the European Union.
In addition to business leaders, the active participation of scientists is particularly noteworthy.
Such as Dr. Kostas Lagouvardos (Director of Research at the National Observatory of Athens), Dimitris Lyritsis, a lawyer admitted to the Supreme Court with many years of expertise in issues related to private debt resolution, primary residence protection, and housing policy.
Also, Giorgos Pappas, a certified public accountant and lecturer at the Institute of Education of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants, who until a month ago served as President of the Economic Chamber of the Northwest Peloponnese and Western Greece.
Another notable figure is Maria Lepenioti, who served as Vice President of the Supreme Court and, until her retirement on June 30, 2025,she served as President of the Fifth Criminal Division of the Supreme Court.
A key figure is Fragiskos Koutentakis, Assistant Professor of Public Finance in the Department of Economics at the University of Crete. From 2015 to 2018, he served as Secretary General for Fiscal Policy at the General Accounting Office of the State.
From 2018 to 2023, he served as Coordinator of the State Budget Office in the Hellenic Parliament, responsible for monitoring and critically analyzing fiscal policy and macroeconomic developments.
Mr. Koutentakis will be responsible for overseeing the Hellenic Police’s (ELAS) economic program, and his “signature” on the final text is considered a guarantee of its costed and realistic commitments.