Candidates galore, no proposals
Greece’s political parties expect to sway voters by announcing their candidates for the upcoming European parliamentary elections. The problem is that political figures are not enough to attract public interest. Voters expect to see specific proposals and policy recommendations. It is a shame that parties have not gone to the trouble of explaining to voters how they plan to deal with the numerous acute problems dogging the country. In the economic sector, for example, the government avoids clarifying which measures it intends to take to avert a fiscal disaster. On its part, the Socialist opposition confines itself to generalizations and populist sound-bites. In the field of education, the government displays a penchant for cost-free publicity stunts while the opposition shies away from any serious debate on the shortcomings that have made Greece an education laggard among EU peers. Yes, the selection of candidates will play a part. But independent voters will take the lack of concrete proposals into serious consideration.
