Political feudalism must end
Nowhere in the democratic world is it as difficult as it is here in Greece to hold politicians accountable for their actions. From the law concerning the conduct of ministers all the way to the provisions that allow the prosecutorial immunity of ministers to be lifted, legislative reforms essentially ensure that they can go unpunished. According to the findings of recent public opinion polls, this status quo has eroded citizens’ trust in the politicians, the political system as a whole and the institutions of justice. People admit to feeling that they are living under a peculiar regime of political feudalism that protects the elite from punishment. In last Sunday’s edition of Kathimerini, law professor Nikos Alivizatos summed up what needs to be done. He wrote that it is time we «took the prosecution of ministers out of the hands of Parliament and placed it squarely under the jurisdiction of the prosecutor’s office, as is the case in most other countries.» His advice should be taken into serious consideration – and soon.
