Voulgarakis succumbs to pressure
Merchant Marine Minister Giorgos Voulgarakis resigned yesterday as New Democracy’s poll ratings dipped after days of pressure on him to step down following revelations about his alleged business activities while in office. Former Justice Minister Anastassis Papaligouras was immediately appointed to replace Voulgarakis. Sources said that the outgoing minister met with Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis shortly before resigning and was told that his presence in the Cabinet was damaging the government. Soon afterward, Voulgarakis sent Karamanlis his letter of resignation. «Recently, there has been an attempt to damage the credibility of the government and impose conditions of political turmoil on the country,» he said. «With a torrent of lies and mud, which create impressions, an effort is being made to obliterate my political existence and sully my honor and standing.» Voulgarakis blamed PASOK for an «unethical and defamatory» attack on him for its own political gain. His choice of words provoked much comment when the former minister had remarked last week that «whatever is legal is also ethical,» after it was revealed that he owns two real estate firms with his wife. His claims – that he was simply a shareholder in the companies and that this was in no way incompatible with his role as a politician – appeared to be undermined when it later emerged that the firms had been active in the market, purchasing several commercial properties for substantial sums of money. The fact that offshore companies also owned the firms also prompted criticism that Voulgarakis was avoiding paying taxes at a time when the government was introducing new measures for self-employed professionals and others. «I can survive the attack against me, as I survived the three terrorist strikes against me, but I will not accept this attack that damages the party, the government and you personally,» Voulgarakis wrote in his letter to Karamanlis. The ex-minister is said to have begun considering his resignation on Wednesday after the prime minister held a rare meeting of the ministerial council in a bid to refocus his government after it appeared to be losing its way. An opinion poll published in yesterday’s Kathimerini, which showed ND’s lead over PASOK dropping to 1.5 percent from 3.5 percent in July, appears to have convinced Karamanlis that Voulgarakis had to go. Reaction to minister’s decision to quit A number of New Democracy MPs had in the last few days joined opposition deputies in calling for Merchant Marine Minister Giorgos Voulgarakis to resign, but yesterday’s events did not seem to please either. «The delay by Mr Voulgarakis has done himself no good, nor the government,» said conservative MP Yiannis Manolis. PASOK was equally unenthusiastic. «Mr Voulgarakis resigned without accepting any responsibility and Mr Karamanlis accepted this resignation, totally covering for his minister,» said Socialist spokesman Giorgos Papaconstantinou. «What has happened is shameful… the people want answers…» «The minister’s resignation is the natural outcome of the scandalous revelations about the tax evasion operation that he had set up,» said SYRIZA.
