To reverse the mood primarily within the New Democracy and to rally the forces of the ruling party, Kyriakos Mitsotakis attempted yesterday from the Parliament in view of the motion of no-confidence that will culminate with Friday’s nominal vote and the statements of the political leaders and the Prime Minister.

Mitsotakis’ reference to a “coalition of the willing” for PASOK, SYRIZA, Plefsi Eleftherias and the New Left set the tone for the prime minister’s thoughts, as there is a firm belief within the government camp that the opposition forces are attempting to overthrow the government in every possible and unlikely way.

At any and all possible and probable odds, the opposition is being pushed by all possible and all possible means by the opposition forces.

Mitsotakis, however, is a given that he is walking in a mined political environment, as the Tempi rallies have unleashed strong emotions, primarily that of anger. Emotions that are also reflected in the first polls to see the light of day, with the GPO poll for the Star representing a resounding bell for the ruling party.

The problematic aspect of the survey is not only the low figure recorded by the ND with just over 23% in the vote intention, almost 3 points below its corresponding figure in the same firm’s survey after the first rally in January. The main problem lies in the qualitative data of the poll, which ranges from unfavorable to extremely negative for the government, the prime minister’s rating notwithstanding. It should be noted that Mitsotakis is far ahead of the runner-up in the suitability for prime minister with 24.9%, but now “no one” has returned to the lead with 36.7%.

More broadly, society seems to have an entrenched sense of a cover-up (71.9%), government responsibility for the accident (85%) and the criminal responsibility of politicians (86.2%). Indeed, two-thirds of New Democracy voters also agree on the criminal responsibility of politicians. It should also be noted that when asked about the necessity of early voting, the majority of respondents (52.5% vs. 44.7%) agree, in a significant shift from the past.

Operating a counterattack

Every survey is of course only a snapshot of the moment and the Maximos Mansion knows that the other opinion polls that will follow will also record the dissatisfaction of the citizens. Beyond that, Mr. Mitsotakis does not want to be carried away by the “momentum” of events and is attempting to take political initiatives in order to fight back politically.

Hence yesterday, in addition to nailing the opposition and being self-critical about what did and did not happen in the railway, Mr. Mitsotakis also announced two political initiatives: the debate on the constitutional enshrinement of evaluation in the public sector and the prospect of a transnational agreement for the maintenance of railway rolling stock by a European body with proven experience. Notably, the government is urged to move quickly to staff the administration of the newly created company Hellenic Railways, which is the product of the OSE-GEROSE-GAIOSE merger.

Mitsotakis will be in Brussels today, but with his antennae focused on Athens and on parliamentary events, ahead of his speech tomorrow, where he will make broader references and outline the stakes for the coming years. “We will not allow you to tear the country apart,” government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told the opposition last night, setting the tone for the government’s intentions.

Topic of the day is the reshuffle

New Democracy MPs, however, are engaged in the discussion about the changes in the government, which are expected to be broad, but until the decisions of Mitsotakis prove this. “Riddle” is what is to come with the Maximos Mansion, as recently the name of Kostis Hatzidakis has been mentioned for a position in the core of the Prime Minister’s office. Of course, it remains to be seen what rearrangements there will be in terms of the existing faces in the prime minister’s core.

There was also much discussion among MPs about the Dark Room column’s revelation about Konstantinos Kyranakis being heavily “touted” for the position of deputy transport minister, although there is some question as to what will happen to the political head of the ministry. Competent sources estimate that decisions are a matter of days, which is logical since Mitsotakis has begun discussions with both his colleagues and interested parties.