“You know, this isn’t the first time we’ve encountered turbulence. But we will overcome it again, guided by truth and action. What is needed today is a collective call for vigilance and acceleration. And that, in turn, means that a project that would have taken a year to complete must now be done in just a few months.” With this statement, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in his opening remarks at yesterday’s cabinet meeting, sought to “lift the spirits” of his ministers, given the somber atmosphere of recent days.

To reinforce this message, throughout the session, no one brought up the Tempi case, focusing exclusively on the meeting’s agenda.

Mitsotakis, of course, is well aware that this time the turbulence is severe, and the government’s “vessel” is not fresh out of the shipyard. It has wear and tear, and quite a few…sailors have clocked in many nautical miles. However, he remains confident that he can reach the shore, even if, at this stage, it seems difficult.

The prime minister believes that adjusting his strategy, intensifying the government’s work, achieving tangible results, and, of course, the passage of time will shift the public mood. Until then, however, the government finds itself in a tight spot—perhaps its most difficult moment since taking office in 2019. A GPO poll (Parapolitika) easily leads to the conclusion that the government’s polling gains from the last favorable two-month period evaporated within days. According to his close associates, Mitsotakis had little choice but to give his interview on Alpha and redefine his strategy, both in terms of addressing the substance of the issue and ensuring its thorough investigation.

Decisions and Counterattack

The mood within the government and the parliamentary group of New Democracy is “heavy.” Lawmakers, in their discussions, mention that they are feeling social pressure and are themselves seeking answers to questions the government keeps deferring to the judiciary.

Ministers, too, are concerned about what comes next. The snapshots captured by the cameras in the blue parliamentary seats during the second round of voting for the Presidency of the Republic were telling. Many New Democracy MPs who participated in the parliamentary inquiry into the Tempi case also feel “hung out to dry,” despite the Maximos Mansion’s later efforts to smooth things over by explaining that Mitsotakis’ stance was meant as a general comment on parliamentary inquiry committees.

In any case, the prime minister will have to make significant decisions in the coming period. At this point, everyone is predicting a cabinet reshuffle—something Mitsotakis had originally planned for much later. Now, whether he likes it or not, he may have no other choice. Apart from the widely discussed splitting of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, changes are also expected within the core of Maximos Mansion.

However, the prime minister does not intend to go down without a fight, nor does he want the government to simply “surrender” to events. In an environment of parliamentary trench warfare, Mitsotakis has made it clear that opposition claims will not go unanswered. After all, he has accused the opposition of weaponizing public anger and, in light of an impending no-confidence motion, called on “parties that wish to belong to the constitutional and European arc to consider whether their stance ultimately fuels populism, demagoguery, and blind anti-systemic sentiment.” In other words, whether they are fostering the rise of another protest movement—more than a decade after the “Indignants.”