Farm subsidy probe a new thorn for governement
A new front of political confrontation has emerged after European prosecutors sent the Greek Parliament a case file investigating the possible involvement of two former agriculture ministers in subsidy fraud, as the government shifts to defensive mode.
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office case targets former agriculture ministers Makis Voridis and Lefteris Avgenakis over irregularities in the OPEKEPE agricultural payment organization.
The probe examines the period from 2016 onward, covering 412 million euros in questioned EU subsidies.
Government sources told Kathimerini the subsidy problems are “chronic” and “not only Greek,” pointing to previous scandals during 1999-2004 when the EU demanded fund returns.
They cite SYRIZA government decisions that allegedly opened paths for approving grazing rights applications without livestock.
Both implicated ministers denied wrongdoing. Voridis stated he committed “no punishable act during the exercise of my duties,” while Avgenakis said he performed his ministerial duties “with transparency and conscientiousness.”
Opposition parties are sharpening attacks, with PASOK demanding Justice Minister Kostas Tsiaras resign for allegedly spreading false information.
PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis criticized the government’s characterization of administrative failures, saying: “What did Mr Tsiaras say, lying to the Greek people? That the 412 million which the European Commission charges Greece has to do with administrative failures.”
SYRIZA called the corruption scandal frequency under New Democracy “unprecedented in Europe” and announced plans for a preliminary investigation committee.
The controversy threatens to derail the government’s efforts to move past the deadly Tempe train collision.
Kathimerini
