Division over Vatopedi report
Four of the five parliamentary parties that are still taking part in the inquiry into the Vatopedi real estate swap will deliver their own concluding reports later this month, it was decided yesterday. MPs from PASOK, the Communist Party (KKE), Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) and the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) met to discuss how the probe should be wrapped up. Deputies from New Democracy did not take part, as the conservatives withdrew from the process last month, complaining the inquiry’s main purpose was to tarnish the center-right party. However, yesterday’s meeting was marked by disagreement, both over the conclusions to be drawn so far and when the final reports should be submitted. PASOK, which has a majority on the 13-man panel, has asked for proceedings to conclude by October 18 even though the panel has not yet been advised by evaluators as to whether the swap of public land for property owned by the Vatopedi Monastery around Lake Vistonida in northern Greece worked against the state’s interests and to what extend public coffers suffered. It appears that each party will submit its own report to Parliament, which will then vote on whether any of the key political figures in the alleged corrupt exchange should be brought before a special court. Sources said that PASOK is likely to recommend that former ND ministers Petros Doukas, Evangelos Basiakos and Alexandros Kontos be indicted. It is also examining whether there is enough evidence to recommend action against another two ex-conservative ministers, Giorgos Voulgarakis and Theodoros Roussopoulos, who has denied being the mastermind of the complex swap.
