Desperate need for renewal in politics
There is more and more talk about the need for «renewal» in our political system. And the extremely problematic situation in the economy, as well as other areas, offers fertile ground for such a philosophy. Citizens have become tired with the constant austerity measures they have been forced to put up with since the 1980s, with only brief interludes offering them electoral-season benefits. The inability of the two main political parties to offer any viable solutions and, chiefly, to cultivate a vision and prospects for optimism in the future simply increases the disappointment of citizens. The current New Democracy government was elected on the basis of great promises that crumbled in the face of the harsh reality established by years of PASOK’s creative accounting. And so ND is bound by the problematic state of affairs that it has inherited, but it does not appear to have the courage to carry out essential reform. Meanwhile, the government’s efforts to curb corruption were opposed from many sides and thus undermined. PASOK is in an even worse state than ND. Still tainted by the damage it wreaked during its 20-year reign, the party is untrustworthy and so unable to offer alternative solutions that will be embraced by voters. Any efforts undertaken by party leader George Papandreou have been met with strong opposition from old-school party cadres who reject anything which threatens the privileges they enjoy.
