While a whole generation of Greeks was watching their dreams being crushed in the mire of the memoranda and being forced to take the road to foreign lands for an uncertain future, others, their “peers”, were building careers and fortunes on the backs of the state apparatus. The reason is PASOK President Nikos Androulakis, whose political career is increasingly confronted with its own hypocrisy.

The “Forgotten” Million and Selective Sensitivity

The case of the “forgotten” and undeclared 1 million euros in Mr. Androulakis’s “forgotten” and undeclared 1 million euros in his “Posten Esches” has recently come to light. The answer? The classic, tried and tested political excuse: “It was the accountant’s fault”.

When it came to the OPEKEPE cases, Androulakis and his party did not show the same understanding. There, they insisted on calling for preliminary investigation committees, even in the case of an accountant who had not been able to complete the declarations because he was battling cancer. There, the human side and error were immediately criminalised for the sake of the opposition agenda. But when the mistake is about his or her ownθενshade, the accountant suddenly becomes the perfect scapegoat.

The Real Estate of the Land Registry: A “Green” Contract with Triple Profit

The case of the Oath of Office, however, is not the only one that is stirring public sentiment. Of particular interest is Mr Androulakis’ business activity with the State itself. The PASOK President appears to sublet a building owned by him to the Land Registry Service for the not inconsiderable sum of 10,000 euros per month.

The scandalousness of the case unfolds on three levels, raising legitimate questions:

  • Bidder Rejection: Mr. Androulakis was not the low bidder in the tender. There was another, clearly cheaper bid of €7,000, which was however rejected.
  • Renovation with “Foreign” Tricks: As if the overpriced rent wasn’t enough, the building in question was completely renovated with Greek government money. That is, the taxpaying citizen not only paid a “cap” on the rent, but also took it upon himself to increase the objective/market value of the politician’s private property, upgrading his property for free.
  • Political Timing: This provocative choice of property, the rejection of the cheapest bid and the state funding for the renovation were made at a time when PASOK was in government.

Two Worlds in the Same Generation

The comparison is inevitable and overwhelming. The country was plunged into memoranda, wages were cut, pensions were slashed and young scientists were emigrating abroad by the hundreds of thousands because they had no fate in the sun.

At the very same time, Mr Androulakis, as a top party official, was living lavishly. He was securing “golden” contracts, seeing his property renovated with state funds and enjoying the privileges of a system that led the country into bankruptcy.

Political ethics is not a concept to be rubber-stamped at will. You cannot appear as the herald of the “new” and “transparent” when your own financial affairs are reminiscent of the worst days of old-partyism and statist immunity. Citizens now see, compare and judge.