SYRIZA MP accuses ND, PASOK of hindering Lagarde list probe
SYRIZA MP Zoe Constantopoulou claimed on Friday that the Lagarde list of depositors contains the names of people with ties to New Democracy and PASOK and that the two parties are attempting to block the parliamentary inquiry she is involved in from conducting a proper investigation of the list.
Constantopoulou, who has come under attack from New Democracy MP and committee chairman Christos Markoyiannakis and PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos, told Skai TV that the criticism directed at her – chiefly for asking numerous questions – is an attempt to misdirect the probe.
“If you look at what has been said and the vulgar attitude of some committee members, you will realize the magnitude of the attack, which is not personal but serves the purpose of a cover-up,” she said. Without naming any of the account holders, Constantopoulou claimed some were former or current members of PASOK and New Democracy.
The inquiry is investigating whether ex-Finance Minister Giorgos Papaconstantinou doctored the list of more than 2,000 Greeks who had accounts at the Geneva branch of HSBC. Constantopoulou, however, said that the committee was not properly investigating Venizelos, Papaconstantinou’s successor at the Finance Ministry, over his failure to make use of the list to track potential tax evaders.
Ex-Prime Minister George Papandreou informed the committee on Friday that he would submit a written statement to the inquiry rather than appear before the panel.
