A new round of political confrontation between the government and the opposition has been sparked by Christos Triantopoulos’ decision to request that his case be referred directly to the judicial council.

Government spokesperson and Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister, Pavlos Marinakis, stressed that the government is not shutting down the preliminary inquiry but has accepted it. “Mr. Triantopoulos proposed that his case be referred to regular judges, who can conduct any investigative action without restrictions,” he said.

Marinakis’ statement came after a declaration by PASOK’s spokesperson, Kostas Tsoukalas, who accused the government of attempting to close the preliminary inquiry, citing a 2018 statement by Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

This reference provoked a reaction from the government spokesperson, who accused PASOK of an outrageous attempt to undermine a bold proposal and of engaging in a dangerous equivalence.

“PASOK, in its attempt to justify the unjustifiable through this unprecedented and incomprehensible equivalence, is essentially whitewashing the manipulations of the Novartis conspiracy, of which its own members were also victims,” Marinakis stated.

Full Statement by Pavlos Marinakis

Today’s statement by PASOK’s spokesperson marks the peak of the opposition party’s outrageous effort to undermine a courageous proposal, namely the one made yesterday by Christos Triantopoulos.

First, PASOK, with this statement, attempts a dangerous equivalence by referring to a post made by the Prime Minister in 2018.

In reality, and in their panic, they have fallen into their own trap: Back then, as leader of the opposition, the Prime Minister was referring to the Novartis conspiracy and the attempt made by the SYRIZA-ANEL government to “eliminate” its political opponents using masked false witnesses and a fabricated indictment.

In the case of Mr. Triantopoulos, the situation is the exact opposite. The government is not shutting down the preliminary inquiry, as happened in 2018, but has accepted it. Mr. Triantopoulos proposed that his case be referred to regular judges, who can conduct any investigative action without restrictions. The government majority, despite not agreeing with the content, accepted the opposition’s indictment for reasons of transparency and legal certainty—an indictment from which the opposition is now distancing itself.

In short, PASOK, in its attempt to justify the unjustifiable through this unprecedented and incomprehensible equivalence, is essentially whitewashing the manipulations of the Novartis conspiracy, of which its own members were also victims.

Let PASOK clarify whether they now disagree with their own leader Nikos Androulakis, the party’s secretary Andreas Spyropoulos, parliamentary representative Dimitris Mantzos, spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas, deputy spokesperson Olga Markogiannaki, and several of their MPs, who were adamant in demanding that Mr. Triantopoulos be referred to the natural judge. And let them not further damage their position with dangerous equivalences like today’s.

“Why Doesn’t He Want the Preliminary Inquiry to Proceed?”

In his post, PASOK spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas recalled that during the discussion on the Novartis preliminary inquiry in 2018, Kyriakos Mitsotakis had stated:
“Do not dare to shut down the preliminary inquiry committee without bringing everything to light.”

“Yesterday, he declared in a post that the preliminary inquiry does not need to function, even though he himself voted for its establishment just a few days ago.
What has changed? Why doesn’t he want the preliminary inquiry to proceed? Why doesn’t he want the witnesses to appear before it?
Does the Triantopoulos case not need light before the preliminary inquiry is closed?” he asked, accusing the government of a selective approach to institutions.

Full Statement by Kostas Tsoukalas

“Do not dare to shut down the preliminary inquiry committee without bringing everything to light.”
This was Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ statement in February 2018, during the discussion on establishing a preliminary inquiry for the Novartis case.

Yesterday, he declared in a post that the preliminary inquiry does not need to function, even though he himself voted for its establishment just a few days ago.
What has changed? Why doesn’t he want the preliminary inquiry to proceed? Why doesn’t he want the witnesses to appear before it?
Does the Triantopoulos case not need light before the preliminary inquiry is closed?

This is yet another proof of the Prime Minister’s and New Democracy’s selective treatment of institutions.
How many more times will Mitsotakis contradict himself? How many more times will he insult the intelligence of the citizens?

Enough with the arrogance and deceit, Mr. Prime Minister.

Institutions and constitutional procedures will not be tailored to suit the political and media strategies of New Democracy.
No matter how much time you try to buy, you won’t succeed. Because, in the end, light always prevails over darkness.