The ploys of power
The government has abandoned all pretense and is now using any means possible to hang onto power for another four-year term. Recently, there have been more and more indications of this, confirming the rumors that reached the press rooms long ago. There are many tactics and a broad spectrum for their use. The most recent example is the government’s flirtation with offering dual citizenship to ethnic Greeks living in Albania. But no one could possibly believe that amassing votes could be the motive behind such initiatives. Besides, the same ploy was used successfully in 2000 when ethnic Greeks from the former Soviet Union were awarded citizenship. Current rumors have it that, according to a poll conducted around Easter time, the overwhelming majority of the roughly 300,000 native Greeks who receive citizenship will vote for ruling PASOK – out of gratitute for the service. But awarding citizenship is just one trick. Recently, we witnessed the government’s almost hysterical reaction when it was criticized for all the things it is not doing. This criticism was branded as a conspiracy by the prime minister himself, while his cohorts attempted, unsuccessfully, to distort reality, sometimes by means of persuasion, other times with brutish threats. And all this is because some people have dared to say that the country is going through an economic crisis and that government officials apparently entangled in shady business interests and stock market trading should leave their posts.
