What is PASOK waiting for?
Greece’s fiscal crisis is beyond question. Unless the Socialist government takes some tough measures to ensure discipline, the country will be forced to borrow on very difficult terms, making its long-term prospects worse. The question is: What is the government waiting for? Assuming that PASOK’s financial planners are aware of the dangers and have a clear understanding of what measures need to be taken to yank Greece out of the fiscal hole it has sunk into, it’s hard to understand why the administration is procrastinating about making those decisions. Antonis Samaras, New Democracy’s newly crowned leader, has shown he is willing to join forces with Prime Minister George Papandreou in a bid to overcome the crisis. For his part, Papandreou has no reason to turn his back on the conservative leader. Any further delay will only postpone the inevitable. Moreover, Papandreou will be charged with a crisis that is not of his own making. The quicker he distances himself from PASOK’s unrealistic campaign pledges and speaks sincerely to voters about the country’s fiscal woes, the better for him and for Greece.
