On Monday, Popular Unity leader Panagiotis Lafazanis received the exploratory mandate to form government which he plans to hold for three days, the maximum period allowed.
With September 20 being the most likely date for snap elections, political parties have started showing what their agendas will be. Government spokesperson Olga Gerovasili said on national broadcaster ERT that it is feasible to have elections on that date.
State Minister Nikos Pappas spoke to Real radio on Monday morning showing confidence that in elections SYRIZA will get the majority to form autonomous government. In case they don’t get the majority they need, they are likely to form a coalition government with Independent Greeks (ANEL) again, he said. Pappas praised ANEL and their leader Panos Kammenos for an excellent cooperation so far.
Pappas excluded the possibility of allying with any other party in the Greek Parliament.
Popular Unity chief Panagiotis Lafazanis will ask for union support
Meanwhile, Lafazanis had a meeting with House Speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou and both attacked Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras for becoming another prime minister who signs austerity memoranda. Lafazanis also accused the President of the Republic for consenting to “express elections” without giving time to other parties to group and prepare.
It is not certain yet if Konstantopoulou will be joining the newly formed party. Nevertheless, Popular Unity have invited the House Speaker and former SYRIZA MEP Manolis Glezos to join the new party.
Lafazanis will have meetings with union leaders to ask for their support in elections having an anti-memorandum and anti-Eurozone agenda.
New Democracy will focus on tax cuts and immigration issues
Speaking on Real radio on Monday morning, Adonis Georgiadis, former health minister in the New Democracy-PASOK coalition, said that New Democracy will take action to tackle the refugee and illegal migrant issue while at the same time will negotiate tax cuts with creditors.
ND President Evangelos Meimarakis said that SYRIZA has no political proposal. Nevertheless, he said, Alexis Tsipras is dragging the country into elections that will drag the economy back.
“”All credit rating houses say that if we go to elections, new harsh measures will be required… It is time for Mr. Tsipras, his friends and his comrades to realize that the country should not go into elections.”
To Potami leader: Tsipras and Lafazanis have failed
Speaking on Cyprus’ Radio First, To Potami chief Stavros Theodorakis said that the only thing Tsipras and Lafazanis “cared about all along were to take power into their hands and appoint their own people [to state jobs]. They didn’t care about coming to an understanding on how to actually govern the country,” he said.
Theodorakis also criticized the government for “not caring about the real economy since most of its members have nothing to do with the economy, the market and employment. All their lives were getting paid by their party and now are getting paid by the state.”
Theodorakis is also against snap elections now because that would hurt the economy. “Every time we have elections, we have a GDP drop.
PASOK Chief: Greeks will pay a special ‘Tsipras’ tax
PASOK leader Fofi Gennimata said on Monday that “Citizens will pay a special tax and that is the reason why the government is speeding up elections.”
Speaking on Mega television, Gennimata said that the prime minister decided to hold elections before the Greek people understand what the agreement with lenders entails.
She said that citizens will have to pay 14 billion euros as a result of his mistakes and the unconditional agreement he has signed.
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