Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper dedicated an article to Radical Coalition of the Left SYRIZA party’s Rena Dourou who is head of the Prefecture of Attica. The article labeled Ms. Dourou as a “Mini Prime Minister” as she has taken on responsibility for the largest prefecture of the country in charge of 11 million Greeks.
The German newspaper states that Ms. Dourou’s prefecture is larger than Luxemburg or Malta, and that Ms. Dourou is the first lady to have held this post following the local elections of May where she gathered 50.8% of the votes. That victory marked the largest victory for the SYRIZA party.
She sits in an office with luxury views of the Acropolis but states that she has no time to even look outside. She states that her large desk is not practical as she is always on the run.
The article states that Ms.Dourou is aged 40, is slim, blonde, wears suits and has braces on her teeth. During her last election campaign a socialist PASOK politician stated that he’d rather see full-body posters of her wearing a bikini than look at her “filthy face.” She continues to remain calm despite the chauvinism. She is known as being calm and level-headed. “Some have compared me with Ms. Merkel,” she says.
From a political standpoint, Ms. Dourou has little in common with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “There is no example from anywhere in the world where a debt crisis has been healed through harsh fiscal policies,” she says. “Why would you be interested in the euro when your father is unemployed?”
She took office at the prefecture on September 1, though her predecessor refused to guide her through her responsibilities as is customary. Instead, she had to re-examine all contracts. She refused to dismiss anyone though she faces prosecution.
She changed the situation by giving vulnerable families aid in paying for electricity.
The article concludes by saying that Ms. Dourou is aware that many are carefully observing the Prefecture of Attica. She says, “I have five years ahead of me and that’s good. Changes need time, sometimes decades.”
