The Greek Letter - ekathimerini.com - Constitutional questions by Constantine Capsaskis - 25 May 2025

 

Constitutional questions[InTime News] Constantine CapsaskisNewsletter Editor Welcome to the weekly round-up of news by Kathimerini English Edition. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis unveiled his government’s agenda for the upcoming constitutional revision this week in a meeting with President Konstantinos Tasoulas. The prime minister highlighted specific constitutional articles during his talk with Tasoulas, including Article 103 that stipulates that civil servants have a right to job permanency and Article 16 that expressly prohibits the establishment of higher education institutions by private organizations (something which directly stands in the way of the government’s higher education agenda). The prime minister also addressed Article 86 which relates to questions of ministerial accountability and provides legal immunity for cabinet members, an issue which has become particularly prominent with the investigation of the Tempe railway disaster. But the focus of the agenda was clearly the issue of civil servant permanency. “Civil servants holding posts provided by law shall be permanent so long as these posts exist,” states the Constitution of Greece, a provision adopted in 1911 to counter the politically driven firing and hiring of Greece’s public sector workers following every election. The prime minister had clearly stated that he would be seeking to amend Article 103 a day earlier during an expansive radio interview, stating that his aim was to modernize the framework of public administration. The crux of the matter is that while mechanisms do exist to fire public servants, this is usually an arduous bureaucratic process and is usually only successful when the civil servant is found guilty of a criminal act. Indicatively, only 1,000 public servants have been dismissed since 2019. “We have some public employees who systematically refuse to work. That must change,” he said, something he would repeat the following day during his meeting with Tasoulas. “In cases where employees systematically fail to meet standards, there will be no constitutional obstacle to removing them from the public sector,” he told the president. However, to pass any sort of constitutional revision, the government will need cross-party support. For an article to be sent for revision by the next parliament, it requires a three-fifths majority (180 MPs) in the current 300-member parliament. If that threshold is met, only a simple majority (151 MPs) will be needed in the next parliament to finalize revisions. Without it, a supermajority will again be required in the next session. To this end, Mitsotakis has called on opposition parties to work together with the government, particularly main opposition PASOK. “Constitutional revision is an opportunity for discussions that build bridges rather than create divisions. I expect the parties to respond with a sense of responsibility,”, he said, stating that he hopes PASOK comes to the table with an open mind. However, given the reaction of many opposition parties to the announced revisions, the prime minister may have little reason to be hopeful. “We do not trust Mr. Mitsotakis, and we will not give him a carte blanche”, said the PASOK spokesperson. Spotlight The European Public Prosecutor’s Office will continue its investigation of the alleged embezzlement of hundreds of millions of euros of European Union community funds earmarked for agricultural subsidies, with early findings reportedly pointing to widespread fraud. Instances include fictitious contracts for subsidized agricultural land that allowed individuals to collect funds by claiming its maintenance for livestock grazing, with officials of state organizations being allegedly complicit in this misuse. As part of the investigation, surprise raids and inspections were carried out at offices of Greece’s Community Aid Payments Agency (OPEKEPE) in Athens and Crete, with Greece’s largest island thought to be at the heart of the issue. The EPPO has already announced that it has filed charges against 100 people suspected to be involved in the scandal, for an overall damage of 2.9 million euros to the EU’s budget. The head of OPEKEPE, Nikolaos Salatas, was dismissed by Agriculture Minister Kostas Tsiaras on Friday, citing “urgent public interest”. The move came after Salatas clashed with the EPPO, after the latter accused his agency of a “lack of sincere cooperation”.   Severe water shortages in regions of central and southern Greece have led to restrictions on irrigation, with many farmers forced to abandon water-intensive crops such as tomatoes and cotton that have long been agricultural staples. As reservoir levels across the country have fallen to critical levels, local water management organizations have been forced to introduce water rationing. Indicatively, on the island of Crete, the authorities announced that water would not be provided for greenhouse vegetables (such as tomatoes and cucumbers), instead focusing on perennial crops (including olives and grapes). To manage the fallout, several farmers have moved to cultivate less water-dependent crops like chamomile and durum wheat. Despite announcements to develop new infrastructure, including a new dam in Thessaly that would irrigate up to 11,500 hectares of land, they have yet to materialize which has limited the country’s water storage potential despite instances of heavy rainfall. Questions are also being raised on the use of legal, and illegal, boreholes that are used to mitigate the irrigation restrictions, with experts warning that the overextraction risks long-term aquifer depletion and raises sustainability concerns.

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OPINION Tom EllisEditor-in-Chief, Kathimerini English Edition Greece, Israel and their diasporas[InTime News] The strategic relationship between Greece and Israel has been a critical component of Greece’s foreign and security policy over the last 15 years, under many different governments. For a number of reasons – ranging from geopolitics and economics to regional stability and balance of power – even politicians who might disagree with specific Israeli actions, as do many long-time close friends of Israel, see the close cooperation between Athens and Jerusalem as a natural reality that must be preserved and deepened. Knowledgeable diplomats, experts, and opinion makers recognize that this is a forward looking mutually beneficial relationship that will withstand the test of time; transcending ideologies, governments and leaders. A critical pillar of this relationship has been the diaspora; the traditionally close ties between the Greek American and Jewish American communities in the US, a fact that is highlighted in the timely joint interview published in today’s Kathimerini, by two of the most influential and respected leaders of their respective communities, the American Jewish Committee’s CEO, Ted Deutch, and the Hellenic American Leadership Council’s executive director, Endy Zemenides. The many converging interests, including the mutual support for the India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), as well as the suspicion about parts of the openly declared, as well as the hidden, agenda of certain actors in our region, add to the need to continue deepening the relationship between Greece and Israel, with Cyprus being an added value to the equation, both on the government and diaspora levels.

CHART OF THE WEEK

The European Commission’s Spring forecast underlined both the strengths and weaknesses of the Greek economy. Greece’s growth rate continues to be above the European average (9th) and records high levels of primary surpluses. However, it also has the worst current account deficit (-8.2%, with the European Union average standing at a 2.5% surplus), persistent inflation, and is the only country in Europe where households had a negative saving rate (-2.5% in 2025 and expected to be -1.8% in 2026). The report, however, praised reforms to reduce the level and breadth of tax evasion and the introduction of the digital work card.

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ECONOMY IN A NUTSHELL

“The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 1,802.34 points on Friday, down 0.10% from last week.”

“There is a significant discrepancy between the salaries private sector employees according to the latest data by the Single Social Security Entity, with those employed by large enterprises earning an average of 400 euros more each month than those employed by SMEs. According to the Parliamentary Budget Office, it will still take another ten years for the nominal GDP per capita to reach 21,000 euros as it was in 2007.”

“Cases of online card fraud increased by 4% in 2024, with a total of 349,000 citizens reporting that they had been scammed while shopping online. The total losses from the unauthorized use of card data during internet transactions, the most common type of card fraud, rose to 17.7 million euros.”

WHAT'S ON THE AGENDA

27/05/2025Emergency OPEKEPE board meeting: The board of the Community Aid Payments Agency has called an emergency meeting, following the probe by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. 28/05/2025Attica Taxi strike: The union representing taxi drivers in Athens has announced a 48-hour strike this week, with demands including the better regulation of mobile applications and the loosening of environmental requirements. 29/05/2025Fall of Constantinople: The Fall of Constantinople in 1453 will be commemorated with a series of events, including the ‘Palaiologia’ in the town of Mystras.

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PODCAST

23/05/2025 • 10:25Europe’s €150 bln defense lending scheme, Turkey’s participation, and Greek concernsVassilis Nedos, Kathimerini’s diplomatic and defense editor, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into the EU’s Security Action For Europe (SAFE) €150 billion defense lending scheme, and the decision at the EU level to allow for limited participation by third countries – including Turkey.

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