PASOK on Mitsotakis: Pretending to Be the ‘Hero of Transparency’ Over OPEKEPE Scandal

In a sharply critical statement, PASOK spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas responded to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s weekly review, particularly targeting his comments on the OPEKEPE scandal. Tsoukalas highlighted the irony in Mitsotakis’s declaration: “We will not back down, no matter the political cost, until all those who received illegal subsidies are exposed and punished.” He questioned how such words can come from a Prime Minister who, for five years, feigned ignorance about a corruption scandal that burdened taxpayers with nearly one billion euros in penalties. Tsoukalas also criticized the government for staging an unconstitutional farce in Parliament to shield two ministers from judicial investigation and pointed to party officials, like the so-called ‘Frappes’ and the ND Regional Policy spokesperson, flaunting luxury Jaguars. So far, the Mitsotakis government has fiercely resisted any effort to clarify the OPEKEPE affair and has attacked European institutions demanding oversight. The Prime Minister, with audacity, plays the role of the ‘hero of transparency.’ It would be comical if it weren’t a tragic reality. In truth, he acts as an enabler of cover-up, hiding his government’s responsibility in yet another corruption scandal. Cleansing will only come with his departure and the defeat of the New Democracy government.