OPINION

People have had enough

One imagines that the forthcoming opinion polls will reflect the public’s reaction to the way the Siemens scandal is being swept under the carpet, and that both the New Democracy and PASOK parties will see their ratings drop even further. Perhaps the two major parties no longer enjoy even the support of 40 percent of those polled. What a wretched state our political system is in, not to mention that of the two major parties, who have alternated in power for nearly 35 years, a period that has been the longest period of democratic rule in the country’s history. Of course the political system has never worked perfectly; behind the facade, corruption, the decline of institutions, partisan nepotism and an absence of meritocracy have eaten away at it like woodworm. The people are disillusioned with the indifference of our thick-skinned politicians, but now that everything is coming out into the open and an attempt is being made by the powers-that-be to conceal the truth, the public is up in arms, first of all against the two-party system. One wonders whether the two party leaders, Costas Karamanlis and George Papandreou, both educated men of unquestionable honor, will work together to find ways to convince the people that they are trying to pull their parties out of the mud. Over the past two years, the people have been treated to the distressing sight of the two leaders engaging in cockfights in Parliament instead of sitting down together to find solutions to the urgent problems of education, social security and the high cost of living. The people blamed PASOK for this situation, according to the results of last September’s election, and they were not far wrong in view of Papandreou’s insults against Karamanlis. Now that everyone is angry with both leaders, the two are putting on a show of indifference, each hoping that the other will be consumed by the rising flames. The people will not forgive such outrageous irresponsibility.

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