Amping up the campaign vibes ahead the looming elections for Greek municipalities and the European Parliament, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said the country is on a comeback and has to leave the past behind, taking a shot at the major opposition Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA).
The two parties are locked in tight contests for the polls just as Samaras said he has created an unlikely comeback from a crushing economic crisis although austerity measures he imposed have created record unemployment and deep poverty, providing ammunition to SYRIZA.
“The country is at a crucial turning point, at a historical crossroads,” he said.
Samaras accused SYRIZA, whose leader Alexis Tsipras has vowed to revise the terms of 240 billion euros in bailouts from the Troika of the European Union-International Monetary Fund-European Central Bank (EU-IMF-ECB) or renege on them, of not realizing the crisis was coming to an end.
“Nostalgic for yesteryear, they promise to do away with the memorandums that we are now leaving behind. What will SYRIZA do without the barbarians, without the memorandums?” he said, paraphrasing Greek poet Cavafy, and pledged that the government will not introduce any more pay cuts, tax hikes, or slashed pensions.
Speaking to the parliamentary group of his Samaras said the government, which includes his coalition partner, the fast-fading PASOK Socialists, were changing the circumstances.
“We will soon restore pre-crisis living standards, only this time on more solid foundations,” said Samaras describing the conservatives as a beacon of stability in the Greek Parliament.
He warned his deputies that a loose vote in the coming elections would jeopardize the country’s achievements over the past few years.
“[You need to] explain [to voters] that nothing is given. Many small mistakes can bring about major damage, they can lead to worse than what we’ve had to put up with until now,” Samaras said.
A new opinion poll on voting intentions for European Parliament elections on May 8 showed New Democracy trailing SYRIZA by 2 percent.
Conducted by Pulse for the weekly To Pontiki newspaper, the poll showed SYRIZA taking the lead with 22.5 percent, followed by Samaras’s conservative party which stood at 20.5 percent.
Meanwhile, Greece’s unemployment rate dipped to 26.5 percent in February from a downwardly revised 26.6 percent in the previous month, the country’s statistics agency ELSTAT said.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
