Paying the price for haste

That dreaded moment when we all have to pay the cost of the shenanigans that began when SYRIZA won the elections in January last year has arrived.

In the months leading up to that point, Greece had set out on the path toward economic recovery and had begun dipping a toe into the international bond markets.

There is no doubt that the measures Greece’s creditors were demanding at the time so the fiscal adjustment process could be completed were tough, as highlighted in the infamous e-mail sent to the lenders by the finance minister at the time, Gikas Hardouvelis. However, they pale in comparison with what is on the negotiating table now.

Alexis Tsipras rushed to get into power when he could have allowed the previous government to overcome the obstacles that remained in Greece’s path. His haste cost him, and the citizens of this country, very dearly.