Minister says people missed her address
Education Minister Marietta Giannakou yesterday defended her decision to issue a circular enquiring which schools ignored her address to pupils on Monday’s school opening day, saying she had received complaints from people who wanted to hear what she had to say. The circular prompted three MPs from the PASOK main opposition party to table a question in Parliament asking whether Giannakou proposed to penalize officials who had failed to read her address to teachers and schoolchildren at school blessing ceremonies throughout Greece. «If the minister cannot issue an address, who can?» Giannakou countered, saying there had been many complaints about the message not being read out. Opposition parties have accused the government of filling the education system with party favorites, and not having enough teachers in place for the opening of schools.
