The head of the “THESSALONIKI-MAKEDONIA” faction, Mr. Stergios Kalogiros, unequivocally declares his clear opposition to the holding of a referendum on the TIF and the way it is attempted to be held without the necessary legitimacy.

“At a time when the city, our Thessaloniki, needs unity, solidarity and assertion to go forward, some people are trying to divide it, leading it to regression, shamelessly deceiving its people.”

Some “gentlemen of the Left” are close to deceiving the people of Thessaloniki. They have created an online platform, collected names without any digital authentication and submitted them to the municipality asking for a referendum on the TIF. In short, they are proposing a “monkey referendum” on the TIF.

The so-called referendum initiative is based – as they admit – on the collection of citizens’ names via an online platform and forms, with the aim of gathering some 23,000 signatures of citizens in order to ask the City Council to hold a referendum on the future of the TIF site. They again claimed to have collected 23,214 signatures.

But the question is simple: where are the legitimate signatures?

What is being presented as a “people’s initiative” is based on a list of names with absolutely no assurance of authenticity. They are calling for a referendum with details such as full name, maiden name, patronymic, maiden name and year of birth, without a physical signature and without a digital signature through official identification mechanisms.

In simple terms: They want to have an institutional referendum based on simple online name records.

The “Thessaloniki-Macedonia” faction and its leader Stergios Kalogiros make it clear that:

  • The referendum is a serious democratic tool and cannot be turned into a communication game.
  • It is legitimate to call for a referendum. But it must be done by legal procedures and real signatures, not by gimmicks and platforms without certification.
  • With the “leftist cloak of progress” some are trying to fool the society of Thessaloniki.

Even more serious is the economic issue. According to estimates by the administration of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, the cost of holding such a referendum could reach about 1 million euros.

That is, some are asking the municipality to organize an expensive election process with questionable legitimacy. If the result is challenged or declared invalid, then we will have thrown one million euros of the citizens’ money into the wastebasket

The faction “Thessaloniki-Macedonia” clearly warns:

In the unlikely event that – in an unlikely development – the City Council accepts the proposal to hold this referendum, we will immediately appeal to the judicial authorities.

Because what is being attempted is not just a political initiative.
It is a process that risks becoming an institutional fraud against the city and its citizens.

Thessaloniki needs seriousness, institutional order and real dialogue for the future of the TIF. It does not need political gimmicks, pseudo-referenda and communication bubbles.

The citizens of Thessaloniki deserve truth, transparency and respect for democracy. Not democracy… “monkey democracy”.