Calamos Supports Greece
GreekReporter.comGreeceTransparency International: Government Under Tsipras Needs To Fight Corruption In Greece'

Transparency International: Government Under Tsipras Needs To Fight Corruption In Greece'

corruptionBefore the elections, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras had stated that one of his government’s priorities would be to fight corruption in the country. He wasn’t the first politician to make this promise. The international non-governmental organization Transparency International, dealing with corruption in all countries across the world, published an official report questioning the new Greek government’s ability to prioritize transparency and anti-corruption issues.
“One of Alexis Tsipras’ priorities remains constant: to fight corruption. This government had previously appointed a minister to strengthen this fight. This was definitely a good move but it did not deliver”.
The previous minister of state in charge of fighting corruption had beefed up his small organization with a general secretary and had concentrated in chasing the big offenders on the  ‘Lagarde list’. These were people who allegedly evaded paying taxes.
The minister also used his own lists prepared from his previous position as the official in charge of anti-money laundering,” wrote Costas Bakouris for Transparency International.
“There appears to be enough information to collect billions of euros owed to the state from thousands of citizens. Obviously, given the economic crisis and the scarcity of liquidity, the priority is to collect money from the tax evaders with an emphasis on the ‘big fish.’
For the moment there has been some success but nothing spectacular, particularly in the tax evasion cases, partly because the electronic collection tools are not yet good enough and the tax collection agency is ineffective.
What we need is a holistic strategic plan to fight corruption. This has been promised but has not been delivered,” he added.
“What are missing are initiatives that will move Greece towards a culture where ethical values are the norm. The previous government had been moving in the wrong direction. It gave incentives to those who have sent their money abroad and re-employed public servants who have been indicted”.
“It did not confront the conflict of interest issues of ministers and it allowed draft dodgers to keep responsible positions. It also hired friends of friends and relatives for government posts with no respect to meritocracy and justice to all citizens,” noted the non-governmental organization.
In the end, Bakouris concludes that most of these practices were common among Greece’s previous government, sending a wrong message to the country’s citizens. “We hope the new team will change course. It’s time for a change,” he wrote.

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!



Related Posts