Former finance minister Nadia Valavani is furious with Proto Thema, so much so that for the first time in her life she is considering taking legal action for defamation. After a five-page dedication to her mother’s withdrawal of 200,000 euros two days before capital controls were imposed in the country, Valavani is continuing to try to “set the record straight” for three days in a row, believing that her reputation has been smeared and angry that some of the “muck-raking” may stick.

– Did Nadia Valavani’s mother withdraw 200K or 100K?
The former minister claims that her mother withdrew 100K that she had in a National Bank branch in Irakleio, Crete, following a sale of a hotel she owned. She said that since the story broke, she has seen the transaction records and claims that the amount is different than the one in media reports, while also pointing to a different date than what was published.

– When was the withdrawal made?
Valavani also claims the hefty cash withdrawal place on June 18, a week before PM Alexis Tsipras suddenly called for a referendum, which in turn generated a “bank holiday” and dreaded capital controls. Proto Thema reports that according to anonymous sources, the withdrawal took place two days before the announcement of the referendum. Capital controls were imposed on Sunday, June 28, a few hours after then FinMin Yanis Varoufakis took to his beloved Twitter to say that such a measure is incompatible in a monetary union.

– Did she know about the withdrawal?
The daughter Valavani says she doesn’t speak to her mother on a daily basis due to the demands of political career as well as the fact that they live in different cities. She’s pointing to telephone records in an attempt to prove the lack of communication. She states that neither she nor her sister are involved in her mother’s financial dealings though – like most offspring in Greece – they are her sole beneficiaries, along with the minister’s children. She states that her mother did mention her name during the request to withdraw the cash, but only in …passing, and that she had not been contacted at all about the withdrawal.

– Why did her mother withdraw such a large amount of money?
The minister’s mother did not intend to transfer the money out of the country, is the retort, which besides could have been done easily, in pre-cap-control times, via bank transfer. Valavani pointed out that like most Greek citizens her mother watched news reports and felt concerned for her deposits. Valavani, the ex minister, claims her own deposits are sealed in the Greek banking system like everybody else’s — a measure taken by the government she was a part of, the same one negotiating with creditors for months and the administration “managing” the Greek economy.

– Why did Valavani resign?
She says that she handed in her resignation on Monday, July 13, due to her objection to measures envisioned in a third bailout, not because of the furor generated from a tabled question by main opposition New Democracy deputy, Lefteris Avgenakis, who first “broke” the story in a table question in Parliament, although he didn’t name a name at the time, but only referred to a high-ranking minister.

– When was the last time Nadia Valavani spoke to her mother?
The photo that Proto Thema posted was an old one taken prior to the death of Nadia Valavani’s husband. Since his death last November, Nadia Valavani has mourned the loss by wearing black clothes. She said she objects to the photo showing her at a festival with her mother and another photo where her husband has been cropped out, although news sources around the world usually chose the photographs they run.

– Who is Nadia Valavani?
Born on the island of Crete on August 16, 1954, she is a writer and economist with a degree in economics from the University of Athens. She worked as a translator and also managed her family’s hotel on Crete for 10 years. At the age of 18, she was involved in activities against the then military junta ruling Greece. Arrested in February 1974, she served a sentence at Korydallos prison until July 1974, when the junta collapsed. She has participated in various labor movements. She is an active member of Amnesty International and IBS. She lives in Athens and has a son and daughter.