Commentary
Much more weight than what is said and disclosed (in or out of inverted commas, depending on one’s prejudice and partisan objectives) is carried by what is not said or disclosed but which instead hangs over us like a constant threat. One can judge the confessions made by former PM Constantine Mitsotakis’s former senior aide, retired Gen. Nikos Gryllakis (who went on to portray himself as a superspy, as a confidant of 12 rival intelligence services and as a secret adviser to nine presidents and 11 prime ministers) and then ridicule or utilize them, according to one’s objectives. But his revelations far from match the non-revelations of former senior PASOK official and current DIKKI leader Dimitris Tsovolas, in his statement that Laliotis and Simitis will make me say things which I’ve never said in my whole life. What is Tsovolas getting at here? What crucial bit of information is he aware of that will never be made public? The ordinary citizen (note here that it is in the name of the ordinary citizen that all his aspiring saviors go into politics) can only make arbitrary assumptions, for no matter how many sources or political contacts he may have, he is still unable to decipher riddles for which he hasn’t got the slightest clue. We may live in a democracy, but this does not mean that knowledge and information is open to everyone. Even if one reads through all the newspapers on a daily basis, even if one has time to follow all television programs, even if one reads many specialized books, even if one has friends who work in newspapers – one of those know-it-all journalists who will do everything to preserve their precious little share of power – it is totally impossible to know the secrets of indoor politics, a practice which seems to flourish in our country, as everyone makes sure to water and fertilize it. The citizens’ feeling – or rather conviction – that everything is taking place in their absence and that they only hear select news fragments and processed information is a wound for democracy; indeed, the deepest one of all.
