The €9.1 billion in revenue generated for the state by the fight against corruption and tax evasion, according to Konstantinos Kyranakis, secretary of the Political Committee of New Democracy, who spoke to television station ANT1.
“Because results matter in politics, this government of New Democracy has generated €9.1 billion”, he stressed, arguing that the effectiveness of the effort is reflected both in public revenue and in cases uncovered and referred to the courts.
Responding to opposition criticism that the government had been inactive, Mr Kyranakis cited dozens of cases uncovered since 2019. Among other examples, he pointed to the dismantling of rings issuing bogus invoices, tax-evasion cases involving online shops and betting companies, and checks for undeclared income on Mykonos. He argued that tax evasion and tax fraud were being tackled with an effectiveness not seen for decades.
He placed particular emphasis on the tools that enable reports from citizens to be acted upon. “We created a framework in which reports lead to action”, he said, explaining that information is investigated using new technologies and can lead to arrests. He added that artificial intelligence tools allow the AADE to carry out cross-checks faster. “An organised state tackling organised crime”, he said.
On legislation, Mr Kyranakis contrasted the two governments’ actions on active bribery, accusing the SYRIZA government of downgrading it from a felony to a misdemeanour in 2019. “And we made it a felony again”, he stressed, referring to the change made subsequently under a New Democracy government. He also cited warnings at the time from the Union of Judges and Prosecutors about cases becoming time-barred and prisoners being released as a result of reduced sentences.
The New Democracy secretary also referred to cases he handled during his time as a minister. On the Cadastre, he said he had passed information to the Internal Affairs Service about employees who were asking citizens for money to speed up the processing of their cases. He said arrests followed at offices in Attica, and the trials are under way.
He also referred to the creation of a platform for reporting bribery in driving tests, noting that it had led to arrests. “I don’t want any young person to have to pay again”, he stressed, describing the political leadership’s responsibility as delivering results and identifying wrongdoing within its remit.
In the discussion of the legal framework, he criticised changes to the Penal Code under the SYRIZA government in 2019, focusing on the downgrading of active bribery from a felony to a misdemeanour. He cited warnings at the time from the Union of Judges and Prosecutors about cases becoming time-barred and prisoners being released, and contrasted them with New Democracy’s measures to toughen penalties and restore the offence’s status as a felony.
Mr Kyranakis acknowledged that exposing corruption cases carries a political cost for the government, making particular reference to OPEKEPE. He described it as a “political paradox” that the more revelations and prosecutions progress, the stronger the impression of widespread corruption becomes in public debate.
“We know about many of these cases and scandals because some honest people in government did their job”, he said, clarifying that he did not consider the entire state apparatus to be honest. “We know there are corrupt people, we know there are people who have betrayed their oath. The job of honest people is to find them and bring them to justice. And we will continue to do so, even if it carries a political cost”, Mr Kyranakis concluded.
SOURCE: ANA-MPA