And all this worries me. Not everything that needs to be done is being done. On the other hand, when a big ship has to make a turn, the manoeuvres should be done smoothly. I do not know whether we will succeed. But this should happen for sure regardless of whether the country will be inside or outside the euro zone. We simply cannot escape from reality.
Reforms are also lagging behind.
Reforms are a persistent problem in Greece. I do not think there is another country where so many people react negatively when they hear this word. Whenever there was an attempt to push a reform, all united against it. And when reforms are not being made, someone else pays the price.
The trade unionist from the Public Power Corporation can pull the plug to supress the power, but the people in the private sector lose their jobs because the power has been cut off. A large number of public companies have not reduced salaries at all.
What is the role of the party Drassi in this situation? What is it doing to enter parliament at least?
Drassi is a very good party that has very good ideas compared to its power and to the Greek political parties. One of the problems in Greece is a very strange relationship of corruption between the media, the political parties and the state. By this, I mean that Drassi has a very limited access to radio and television stations. I would not believe how true and widespread this fact is, if it hadn’t been for my experience in the elections in June 2012. The moment I stood at the head of the coalition Drassi - Recreate Greece - Liberal Alliance, journalists, friends, who had invited me to their broadcasts for comments, told me that they could not invite me before the elections and that I could appear on screen for comments after their completion. Moreover, in nine out of ten cases, they forgot to mention, while presenting me, that I was from the Drassi party. By this, I mean that Drassi is causing the established system to react in a way, which is much stronger than the power of the party.
On the other hand, I would not say that we are doing everything the right way and others the wrong way. Obviously, we have not found a clearer and straightforward way to reach more people. We will try to find it at the upcoming congress in May. It is not easy, because we are not professional politicians. So, we must find ways and means to achieve this in a more professional manner. I am optimistic that we will find the way to enter parliament.
At the same time, we are trying to connect with other forces from the reformist centre. These attempts cannot produce results immediately and many traps lie behind them. All this is difficult, but we are doing it with a very strong belief, generosity and courage, because we should try to cooperate. It is impossible for us to blame the others for not being able to work well with other forces.
According to the chairman of Liberal Alliance, George Valianatos, the dilemma during the next elections will be SYRIZA or Golden Dawn. What could be changed not to get to this point?
It seems that polarization is gaining ground. This is the worst possible environment for trying to consider and trigger things in the right way. Precisely because the trend is in favour of polarization, we share the opinion that the later the elections, the better for Greece. At least for it to be able to take a breath that we are not so much threatened with bankruptcy or exit from the euro zone.
The next elections will be held in difficult conditions anyway. Even if there is positive news, it will not be positive enough to forget everything else. Difficult conditions do have a beneficial impact on extremes, which in turn further complicates the situation. So, I think a small party to say the right things and win 3% of the votes in order to enter parliament is not enough. It should try to do something more in order for its voice to reach the citizens and make them believe that their vote will not be wasted, that it will bring results.
I have said many times that if Drassi had been able to enter parliament after the elections on 6 May 2012, probably there would not have been a second round of elections. Perhaps the potential government would have been more composed and proactive. But these are only assumptions. I think that we should surpass ourselves, overcome our weaknesses, learn to be professional politicians and do the best that we are capable of.
Bulgaria is currently going through a period of instability. What is the lesson, which Bulgaria and other countries from the former socialist camp might draw from the Greek experience?
The first is that we are living in a very dynamic and unpredictable world. The smaller and lonelier an economy, the harder it will be for it to survive. An impressive shift of the centre of the world economy towards the East is underway and Europe is no longer the centre of the world, or at least not as much as in the past. It must therefore reconsider its position with modesty and composure.
The countries that are in the European Union have reason to be optimistic. Our main goal should be to continue to be in united Europe and to make it stronger because if we continue to belong to it, undermining its foundations at the same time, we are harming ourselves; we are sawing off the bough on which we are sitting. There are no other better alternatives. They are all much worse. The effects of uncertainty and instability are always worse for the weaker. This is a lesson we should not forget. First of all, we should be Europeans, we should support the stability of democracy and the European perspective. Any other decision is almost equal to suicide in our age.
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