Lagarde list panel calls for parliament vote on ex-minister
The parliamentary committee set up in January to probe the handling by former Finance Minister Giorgos Papaconstantinou (photo) of the so-called Lagarde list of wealthy Greek creditors proposed by a slender majority of seven to six on Thursday that Parliament vote on whether to indict the ex-minister on three criminal charges – tampering with a document, breach of faith and violation of duty.
A 56-page report was signed by seven of the 13 MPs on the panel, representing New Democracy and PASOK as well as Democratic Left, which last month quit the coalition following a dispute over the closure of the state broadcaster, ERT. The remaining MPs not only refused to sign the report but most submitted their own reports, suggesting that coalition lawmakers had tried to cover up the responsibilities of other politicians including PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos, who succeeded Papaconstantinou as finance minister, and former Prime Minister George Papandreou. The left-wing opposition SYRIZA is to submit its report on Friday and is expected to insist too that the probe be widened to include at least Venizelos.
In a joint statement on Thursday, the three SYRIZA MPs on the panel expressed concern about the way the probe was conducted. “It is obvious that the fear of revealing the whole truth prevailed over the duty to discover the truth,” they said. It was unclear when Parliament would discuss the report, or reports, ahead of a vote on whether a motion should be tabled for Papaconstantinou to be indicted and, if so, on what charges.
