The Failure of Mitsotakis’ ‘Final’ State in Handling Greece’s Worst Rail Disaster

The governmental inconsistencies in the aftermath of the rail disaster were highlighted after the latest failure involving the Hellenic Railways Safety Authority (EODASAM) and the statements made by its president, Christos Papadimitriou, regarding the causes of the catastrophe. PASOK spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas, commenting on the matter, pointed out that “the government representative spoke about an organized plan to mislead public opinion and cover up the truth. The attack is historically the best defense, but it isn’t enough to hide the government’s responsibilities for the EODASAM failure.” He further added that “the New Democracy government admits it failed to ensure a valid and sufficient state inquiry.” Specifically, he noted that “the same people who called the EODASAM report the ‘Gospel of national self-awareness’ and publicly assured that they staffed the committee with the best experts in Europe now label the report as a ‘misleading tool.’” Tsoukalas emphasized that “Mitsotakis’ so-called ‘final’ state, which failed to implement telecontrol in the railway network and guarantee passenger safety, now admits it could not secure a complete and beyond doubt official inquiry into the country’s worst rail tragedy. Instead of washing their hands, they must take responsibility,” he stressed. In Harilaou Trikoupis, it is believed that the government is once again attempting to evade responsibility for the Tempi disaster by creating confusion among citizens. Meanwhile, close Nicos Androulakis collaborator Dimitris Mantzos, speaking about PASOK’s electoral stability, used football terms to describe how the party should distance itself, stating that “PASOK must kick the ball forward, not keep it at our feet with shoelaces just to feel useful to the team.” He suggested that the party needs to adopt a more progressive and reformist discourse. Mantzos argued that PASOK has proposals in housing, island connectivity, healthcare, and insurance and should highlight them to show it is not merely a protest party but one of responsibility. Regarding internal PASOK matters, he said, “we had our own recent issues; every family has problems that need solving, if not with love, then at least with solidarity, and I believe this is happening.”