“Who will be held accountable and who will not, who will or will not take the stand, and whether they will or will not be tried—in a well-governed democratic state, this is not a matter for the government, for whichever government is in power at the time. “It is a matter for the justice system,” said ELAS President Alexis Tsipras in the second part of his interview with in.gr. “The obligation of any government is not to grant immunity to anyone. All citizens, regardless of their position, must be equal before the law. This is the obligation of a democratic government. And a second obligation of a democratic government is not to manipulate the justice system in order to create immunities,” noted Mr. Tsipras, making it clear that he would not promise “that so-and-so will go to prison,” but that “in a progressive government, in a democratic government, the justice system will be free to assess and adjudicate independently and without interference.” He also pledged that the first to be “under scrutiny” would be himself and the members of his government.
When asked about the ongoing debate over who financially supports the Hellenic Police (ELAS), he replied that it is a “hybrid party supported by the strength of its friends, members, and volunteers, as well as by the contributions of the people who participate,” and announced that the relevant information would soon be made public.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Regarding the member selection process and the criticism directed at him, he emphasized: “We haven’t closed the doors to anyone; we’ve said that the doors here are open, and anyone who wants to come and participate is welcome. What we made very clear is that this initiative will emerge from outside Parliament, not from within it, so we won’t be taking in members of Parliament who were elected with other parties and claiming they’re ours. It will be born within society, by society, for society—that’s our motto. Also, what we’ve said, what we’re aiming for, and what we’ll do is not to have reserved spots in advance. We’ll decide on our candidate lists at some point—okay, this will be done through collective processes.”
“Political ‘airport transfers’ don’t have the same impact as they do in soccer; sometimes in soccer, high-profile transfers succeed, but I think what’s missing in political life today is credibility. “And I, too, want us to build a new framework based on credibility,” he added.
When asked about the recent dispute with PASOK regarding the debts, he stated that he has no intention of getting drawn into the “quarrel.” “It takes two to start a quarrel; it’s what we call ‘fight by yourself,’” he said characteristically, clarifying that what ELAS wants to highlight is “an issue that does not concern PASOK; it concerns political parties as a whole, and above all it concerns New Democracy, which is the ruling party.”
“Those within PASOK whose strategic goal is to target me personally are the very ones whose strategic goal is for PASOK to cooperate with New Democracy after the next elections. In my view, this would be a negative development for the country,” noted the president of ELAS.
Finally, regarding the upcoming elections, he emphasized that “the second round of voting is the round that will bring about a reversal,” arguing that “there is a strong likelihood that the Greek Left Coalition will be the leading party in the second round of elections,” as no matter what the margin is between them and New Democracy in the first round, there will be “70% of citizens who say the government should change,” and “this factor will prevail.”
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Source: APE-MPE
