Chasm between ND and PASOK widens

With the election campaign entering the final stretch, the confrontation between ruling New Democracy and PASOK has also intensified, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in all his recent interviews, having particularly harsh words for Nikos Androulakis.

Speaking to ANT1 on Monday, the PM, once again, accused the PASOK president of getting “closer to SYRIZA” in a common front against him.

“They seem to have a common goal: that I not be the prime minister,” he said.

Mitsotakis also dismissed talk of coalitions as he reiterated that at the moment “there are big differences between ND and PASOK,” stressing that what the country needs is a single-party conservative government.

“The country needs stability with an independent ND,” he said.

However, in order to achieve a single-party government, he must deactivate the “bomb,” as he has described it, of the simple proportional representation system and reduce any chance of forming a government in the first round.

A few days earlier, Mitsotakis had made a personal reference to Androulakis, saying the latter was “obsessed” with him. 

It is worth noting, however, that in all his references, the PM singled out Androulakis, avoiding criticism of PASOK the party.

This escalation, a few days before the elections, is seen as serving specific objectives on the part of the government, which include identifying PASOK with main leftist opposition SYRIZA, and to feed on the intense disdain felt by a portion of the center left party’s voters for SYRIZA.

In this way, the PM is not only attempting to increase his party’s share in the final straight, but in tandem to lower PASOK’s share as well, reducing any chances of a coalition, given that Androulakis has said that PASOK will only talk about cooperation if it gets a high share of the vote.

Meanwhile, Mitsotakis revealed three new policies affecting big social groups during his speech at Elefsina. First, any home that is insured against natural disasters will receive a 10% discount on the ENFIA property tax. Secondly, the Freedom Pass is being made permanent, which means that every 18-year-old will earn 150 euros.

Thirdly, he announced an increase in civil servants’ child allowance and the restructuring of the single pay system.