Statements by outspoken economist and main opposition Radical Left Coalition SYRIZA candidate Yanis Varoufakis, where he compared failure to cut a Greek deal with creditors to worse than death, raised eyebrows on Tuesday.

In comments carried by the French newspaper “La Tribune”, when asked what would happen if a future SYRIZA government fails to reach an agreement with the country’s creditors, the media-savvy economist and university professor replied: “Death seems like a better option when compared to not wrapping up a deal … the real deficit in Greece is one of dignity”.

Mr. Varoufakis charged that this lack of dignity caused previous governments to accept what he called “senseless measures” , while fueling a “vicious circle of indignity, which causes resentment, fear and frustration”.

Mr. Varoufakis also maintained that a SYRIZA-led Greece can oblige Europe to change.

Furthermore, he accused the so-called “troika” of international creditors (EC, ECB and IMF) of trying to unduly influence Sunday’s election. “They are trying to terrorize Greek voters…  the best weapon against the troika is a government elected with a big majority”.

In a sharp reaction to Varoufakis’ statement, PM Antonis Samaras’ press office shot back:  “He’d sooner witness Greece’s death;  SYRIZA’s true plan was unveiled today.”