Chios farmers denied fire aid over land fraud Scandal
Dozens of livestock farmers on the island of Chios say they are being unjustly denied compensation for damages caused by last year’s devastating wildfire, due to bureaucratic confusion and alleged land misdeclarations linked to the discredited farm subsidy agency, OPEKEPE.
According to lawyer Arietta Irini Daouti, who represents the affected farmers, discrepancies between the databases of OPEKEPE and the agricultural insurance agency ELGA have left at least 18 farming families unable to claim support. The issue stems from the fact that pastures on Chios have been declared as land holdings by farmers from other parts of Greece, including Crete and Lemnos.
“Because the pasturelands have been fraudulently declared by outsiders, the data no longer match between the two systems, and the actual farmers cannot prove they suffered damages,” Daouti told Skai TV.
At a press conference on Thursday, members of the Chios Shepherds’ Association expressed outrage, stating that their applications for compensation have not even been accepted, despite significant losses from the June 2023 fire. They said they had raised these concerns repeatedly over the past two years but received no official response.
OPEKEPE at the Heart of Fraud Investigation
The controversy is connected to ongoing revelations about widespread fraud within OPEKEPE, the agency responsible for distributing EU agricultural subsidies. A European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) investigation in 2020 exposed a scheme in which farmers allegedly claimed ownership of public lands and submitted fake rental contracts to secure millions of euros in EU funding.
A recent case file submitted to the Greek Parliament outlines a complex network of influence and favoritism within OPEKEPE, involving efforts to manipulate subsidy distribution and avoid audits. Former Agriculture Ministers Makis Voridis and Lefteris Avgenakis are reportedly facing potential charges for breach of duty in relation to the scandal.
Meanwhile, the farmers on Chios remain in limbo, without financial support or recognition of the damage to their livelihoods. “We are being punished for someone else’s fraud,” one shepherd said during Thursday’s press conference. “We lost our land to fire—and now to paper.”
The situation underscores ongoing challenges in Greece's agricultural subsidy system and raises fresh concerns about transparency, accountability, and the protection of local farmers' rights.
