More work and less time on TV
A small proportion of George Papandreou’s Cabinet seems to have forgotten that the task of governance is best exercised from ministry offices rather than morning television shows. Patients trying to get treatment at the country’s hospitals are justifiably irked when they see Health Minister Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou and her deputy, Fofi Gennimata, wasting their time on pointless TV panels, making one announcement after the other. If government officials fail to understand that such behavior risks becoming a point of ridicule, then maybe their superiors should call them in and explain it to them. The state of Greece’s healthcare sector is at a critical point even without the additional burden placed on it by the rising incidence of swine flu, while other sectors are also at a serious crossroad. What is required is responsible management of the situation and bold decision-making, not ministers who appear to regard each issue as an opportunity to gain a little bit more airtime.
