Former Greek minister Stefanos Manos dies at 87
Former Greek minister and longtime parliamentarian Stefanos Manos has died at the age of 87. He died on Saturday morning, August 15, after facing serious health problems in recent years. His death was reported by multiple Greek media outlets.
Manos served in several key government positions and was associated with major infrastructure, economic and environmental decisions during the governments of Konstantinos Karamanlis, Georgios Rallis and Konstantinos Mitsotakis.
He served as Minister of National Economy and Finance and Minister of Environment, while also founding the Liberals party and later becoming a co-founder of Drassi.
From engineering to politics
Stefanos Manos was born in Athens in December 1939. He studied mechanical engineering with a specialization in aerodynamics at ETH Zurich, graduating in 1963, and earned an MBA in Business Administration from Harvard University in 1965.
He began his professional career in the private sector, becoming deputy general manager and later holding senior executive positions at Allatini S.A. He left the company in 1977 to enter politics.
That year, he was elected to Parliament from the B' Athens constituency as a candidate of New Democracy and subsequently became Deputy Minister of Public Works.
Decades in the Greek Parliament
Manos remained an active figure in Greek politics for decades and was repeatedly elected to Parliament until 2007, with the exceptions of the 1985 and November 1989 elections.
He unsuccessfully sought the leadership of New Democracy twice, in 1993 and 1997.
In 1998, he clashed with Konstantinos Karamanlis over a parliamentary amendment concerning state-owned enterprises. The dispute led to his referral to the party's disciplinary body and his expulsion from New Democracy.
In April 1999, Manos founded the Liberals party, whose emblem was a charging bull. The party contested the June 1999 European Parliament elections independently, receiving 1.62% of the vote.
For the 2000 national elections, the Liberals cooperated with New Democracy, and Manos returned to Parliament on its electoral list. He suspended the party's operations two years later, citing a lack of financial resources.
In 2004, he was included as an independent candidate in third place on PASOK's nationwide electoral list.
Ministerial career and major projects
Manos held several ministerial positions during his political career.
From 1977 to 1980, he served as Deputy Minister of Public Works before taking over the newly established Ministry of Spatial Planning, Housing and Environment. Under Prime Minister Georgios Rallis, he served as Minister of Industry and Energy from 1980 to 1981.
Under Konstantinos Mitsotakis, Manos first served as Minister of Environment, Spatial Planning and Public Works from 1990 to 1991, before becoming Minister of National Economy in 1992 and Minister of Finance from 1992 to 1993.
During his time in government, he was associated with several major projects and policy decisions, including the redevelopment of Plaka, the signing of the Athens Metro contract and contributions to the planning of Attiki Odos.
He also introduced a vehicle scrappage policy targeting highly polluting cars and oversaw the relocation of the Gazi gasworks from central Athens to Elefsina.
Liberal political legacy
Beyond his parliamentary and ministerial career, Manos was active in Greece's business community. He served as vice president of the Greek Flour Millers Association and as a board member of the Federation of Greek Industries (SEV).
He was also honored as a Knight of the Legion of Honour by the President of France.
Stefanos Manos was married and had five children. His death marks the passing of one of the most distinctive figures of Greece's post-dictatorship political era, particularly known for his liberal economic positions and his involvement in major infrastructure and public policy initiatives.
