A case of absurdity
The comments made by former Deputy Education Minister Yiannis Anthopoulos after he admitted to forging the signatures of three of his colleagues – «New Democracy has once again displayed its adroitness in scandalmongering before the elections» – seem like an example of black humor. But the case of Anthopoulos is not the only example of outright absurdity in the remarkable story of the «Pachtas amendment» which has become a huge embarrassment to the ruling party in the runup to the March 7 elections. Sources within PASOK have been saying some pretty incredible things over the past few days. For example, Anthopoulos – who was expelled from PASOK on Tuesday – continues to maintain that there was no problem with the controversial legislation itself but that his expulsion was only to be expected nonetheless. And Foreign Minister George Papandreou – after publicly humiliating his nine colleagues and casting them as crooks in the eyes of the public – stated that this decision, which condemned these deputies at his recommendation, «was necessary and does not refer to specific people.» So for broader «political» reasons, he’s «killed them off.» And PASOK General Secretary Michalis Chrysochoidis displayed the same irrationality when he remarked that the decision regarding the nine deputies «is not a disciplinary measure.» Indeed, it is purely political…
