Worrisome embrace

The results of the first opinion poll after the regional and local elections capture the mood of a public that is watching, in real time, the disintegration of the party that is the main opposition and which rose to government in 2015 with promises and commitments that could not be implemented (but even if they had been implemented they would have been disastrous for the country).

The fact that, based on a poll conducted by GPO, if national elections were to be held now SYRIZA’s share of the vote would only be 12.9% – just one point above the third most popular party, Socialist PASOK – is quite telling. The same is true for the finding that its new leader, Stefanos Kasselakis, comes last in the respondents’ preference for the most suitable prime minister, and he is also the least popular political leader at the moment. Finally, despite the fact that he is the leader of a party of the radical left, Kasselakis is viewed as a leftist by only 6.1% of respondents. The larger issue was raised by SYRIZA heavyweight and former labor minister Effie Achtsioglou on Wednesday, in a joint statement issued with two other party officials: “The party is disintegrating,” and no matter how much its officials persistently urge former leader Alexis Tsipras to make some kind of statement, he insists on remaining silent.

Despite the fact that he is the leader of a party of the radical left, Kasselakis is viewed as a leftist by only 6.1% of respondents

If, as some have claimed, Tsipras wanted to use someone as a smokescreen, or even as a puppet, to break up the party – so he wouldn’t be accused of doing it himself – and get rid of its hard-left elements so he could retake the baton later and lead SYRIZA in a new “centrist” direction, such a plan involves many risks. The most obvious is that in the end there might not be a party left to lead. But is that really the case? With his silence, Tsipras neither confirms nor denies anything. But this attitude is interpreted by most as an indirect admission that all this is, or was, his own plan. Whether it will succeed in the end remains to be seen. So far, it seems to be working in favor of SYRIZA’s political rivals. PASOK is closing the gap with the main opposition, the Communist Party is also increasing its percentages, while New Democracy rules undisturbed.

So were the leftists of SYRIZA deceived by Tsipras and his people in the party? At the moment, they seem to be insinuating something like that, even if they do present a conspiracy theory with “dark centers” working to dissolve the party, dragging its former leader in this direction (probably as a last resort to maintain Tsipras’ clout).

But perhaps they should have realized what was happening in the background when they saw a smiling Nikos Pappas – Tsipras’ right-hand man and former minister – euphorically embracing Kasselakis on the night of his election. That in itself should have raised alarms among the comrades.