Minggu, 15 April 2012

Greeks figuring out that they have to ignore the Troika demands and select a government that suits the national interests.....

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_14/04/2012_437822


Greeks reject EU-IMF plan, want coalition rule

A majority of Greeks reject an economic recovery plan imposed in return for EU-IMF loans and would prefer a coalition government to emerge from upcoming elections, opinion polls showed on Saturday.
A poll by the MRB company showed that 26.2 percent of respondents intend to vote for a party opposed to the unpopular EU-IMF rescue in the May 6 ballot.
In response to another question, 66 percent said Greece should stay in the eurozone but adopt an alternative recovery plan, while 13.2 percent said the country should drop the euro altogether.
Greece in 2010 appealed to the European Union and the International Monetary Fund for loans to avert bankruptcy and was forced to put its economy in order.
In order to tackle runaway state deficits, it adopted tough austerity policies bringing layoffs, pay cuts and tax hikes.
There are now over a million unemployed according to official figures -- more than a fifth of the workforce -- and the country is sinking deeper into recession.
Those polled by MRB for Real News weekly also gave a negative evaluation to the outgoing administration of Prime Minister Lucas Papademos, who headed a temporary socialist-conservative coalition that brokered a new eurozone-IMF bailout in February and a huge debt cut in March.
Still, over 65 percent of respondents said a coalition government would be best suited to tackle the country's ongoing challenges.
Another poll by the Pulse company in Eleftheros Typos daily also found that 64 percent prefer a coalition to be formed after the election.
The leader of the frontrunning conservative party, Antonis Samaras, has rejected the idea of another coalition with the socialists.
Greece in June will attempt to chop another 11.5 billion euros ($15 billion) off spending by 2014 to meet conditions laid down under a previous EU-IMF debt rescue.
Both the conservatives and the socialists, who have alternated in power in the last three decades, have lost support to left-wing parties who oppose the austerity drive. A number of splinter parties have also emerged, making the upcoming campaign the most uncertain in decades. [AFP]

and....

The end of the two-party era?

By Costas Iordanidis
Elections have been called for May 6. Meanwhile, polls show both New Democracy and PASOK have lost a considerable part of their power. Some have even expressed fear the two parties will be unable to garner the necessary votes to form a coalition. If this actually happens, the post-1974 political system will see its definitive demise.
It is doubtful all these events will actually take place. The election outcome will most probably result in a coalition formed by the two main parties. If nothing else, the prospect of chaos will have a rallying effect on both, but neither will be able to govern alone.
Perhaps the two-party system in Greece has been dealt a final blow too. This is a result of the fragmentation of the center-right, the country’s largest political formation. Had the conservatives remained in one piece, a commendable left-of-center party would have to emerge as a coalition partner since the Communist Party has ruled out engaging in any power-sharing agreement.
This is not the time to decide who is responsible for the center-right’s fragmentation or feel sorry for the way political things have turned out. Even countries like the UK are now being governed by a coalition.
It is easy to understand why -- against all reason -- both ND and PASOK insist on the need for a one-party government. Our political leaders got used to operating in conditions of head-on confrontation, as it was only through a system of absolute control of the state mechanism that they could cater to their patrons’ needs. Yet beyond the proclaimed -- and unattainable -- target of a one-party government, ND and PASOK officials are expressing the need for the two parties to jointly garner over 50 percent of the votes, in order to have the legitimacy to implement the second memorandum they voted in Parliament. They have a strange perception when it comes to the representative system. Only three “popular majority” governments have been elected in postwar Greece. All others were “popular minority” governments, but that did not prevent them from reaching crucial decisions.
The fear felt by the leaders of both parties in connection to the reactions which will be seen after the elections with the implementation of new measures and the ongoing recession is understandable. But no one forced them to demand early polls. They will have to suffer the consequences. They will have to invent new political theories as the administrators of decisions agreed with the troika and they will be worn out on an intellectual level too It will be good for them, if they survive.

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar