Galery

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The Greek media almost exclusively pay attention to the parties that are presented in parliament. With the exception of the election period, you can hardly see smaller parties in the media. At the same time, the majority of the citizens are informed about them, from television and radio broadcasts. So, even if we publish something in a newspaper or conduct a local campaign in Athens, this news is not likely to reach all parts of Greece.

This goal requires funds and we have no access to government funding unlike the smallest parties, such as Green Environmentalists for example, which are receiving huge amounts because they have one Member of the European Parliament. I read that last year the party received state funding to the amount of 900,000 euro. Therefore, a party like Drassi, which is financially supported by its members, is unable to compete with the political parties that receive government subsidies. It is easier for them to pay for advertising in the media, to participate in TV broadcasts, etc.

Another issue is the requirement of the Council on Television and Radio to the media that they should give the parties time to present themselves in accordance with their result at the last elections. We obtained 1% of the votes, which means that our appearance is once in a month. This rule is observed, but as you understand, it is not sufficient if the other forces are continuously represented.

What is your forecast for the events in Greece in 2014? Do you think that there could be early elections? What result do you expect from the local elections?
 
To be honest, I am concerned because I see that all the political forces are "pulling the rope tight". On the one hand, the government is seeking to extend its life as long as it can but it is not carrying out the reforms that will provide real solutions to the problems on the other. What it is actually doing is postponing the payments to suppliers, thus ensuring the desired budget surplus. So, the only thing it is gaining is time, awaiting the solution to the problems to be godsend. Of course, this cannot happen. I think the government really wants to pass the hot potato into the hands of the next government, which has been the tactic of all governments in Greece since 1974. The majority of them did not solve the problems but simply transferred them to the next government. Then that bubble burst.

Holding the municipal elections and the elections for Members of the European Parliament under these conditions will once again drive the citizens to give their protest vote by supporting the extreme political forces. In general, the situation is "explosive". On the one hand, I do not see how the government could trigger early elections in the first half of the year, during the Greek EU Presidency. On the other hand, I really cannot imagine how the government will manage to stay in power if the results of the local and European elections are so overwhelming that the extreme left parties and the right forces become dominant.