Opposition proposals for probe into ministers over Tempe train crash rejected

Parliamentarians rejected proposals by two opposition parties for a panel to look into possible ministerial responsibility in acquiring a telematics system that played a key role in the fatal train collision at Tempe in February this year.

The main opposition party SYRIZA and PASOK-KINAL had each requested a special preliminary committee on the so-called Agreement 717, which called for the upgrade of the system on the Athens-Thessaloniki-Promahonas national railroad line.

PASOK’s proposal was aimed against former SYRIZA Transport & Infrastructure ministers Christos Spirtzis and New Democracy’s Kostas Karamanlis, while SYRIZA’s proposal named former ministers Spirtzis, Karamanlis, Kostis Hatzidakis, and Michalis Chrysochoidis.

The proposals were rejected by majority vote after a 15-hour plenary discussion, based on the votes of ruling New Democracy.

Following a plenary vote last week, the ruling party set up a parliamentary investigative committee to examine the accident’s causes overall and the state of the national railroad. The accident is also the focus of other judicial investigations.

None of the deputies named by the two opposition parties took part in the proposals referring to them, while the vote was anonymous.