Left bears no relation to ‘modified’ PASOK
Left Coalition President Nikos Constantopoulos, who is heading the «Radical Left Coalition» ticket in next month’s election, has thrown down the gauntlet to the new PASOK leader, attacking the Simitis government’s record, particularly on social policy, as «a debasement and corrosion of institutions» and «unheard-of entangled interests and corruption.» «People of the Left have nothing to do with the ‘modified’ policies and ‘modified’ parties, such as those being formulated and formed by George Papandreou,» said Constantopoulos, [using the Greek word for something «genetically modified,» which can also mean «mutant»]. He also challenges Papandreou to take a stand on these issues («It is not enough for him to apologize for something every day.»). As for the new leader’s plans, Constantopoulos said that «as prime minister, (Papandreou) will move in a more conservative direction» than his predecessor. The Synaspismos Left Coalition leader was bullish about the election results, believing that «progressive society as a whole,» and not only the Left’s own supporters, «will not allow a force such as the Coalition to be left out of Parliament.» He was particularly caustic about former Left Coalition cadres who have gone over to PASOK («opportunism» and «regrettable phenomena that harm politics in general»). Finally, he went to great pains to mention the need for «an alternative proposal for government» at the opposite end of the spectrum to neoliberalism.
