Powerful Tremor Shakes Greece with Leaked Lists of Allegedly Corrupt Politicians

Posted by keeptalkinggreece

The most powerful tremor of recent years shakes the Greek political world, after several lists contaning names of  politicians alleged under investigation by the Finance Crime Units (SDOE) were leaked to the press and published by a number of newspapers and news-portals.  Current and former political leaders, ministers and deputy ministers, former and current MPs and some local governors, a total of  at least 36 men and women saw their names on the list that was apparently in the hands of SDOE and involves them in corruption scandals.

“The list included the names of 11 former ministers, 10 former deputy ministers and 12 former or current MPs, though the allegations against the politicians were not made public. ”(ekathimerini)

The latest list uploaded on internet last night, triggered the intervention of Supreme Court prosecutor Yiannis Tentes.

 Tentes ordered an urgent investigation regarding the leakage of the list and the probe will examine possible violation of privacy committed by SDOE officials as well as the involvement of journalists and media.

In his letter published in the media, Tentes emphasized that the leaks ”continue the violation of the basic rules of the criminal preliminary proceedings (principle of secrecy).”
“The violation of the secrecy of investigation hinders the effectiveness of the interrogation work of justice and therefore seriously affects the public interest on one hand and it leads to moral decline of those under investigation, something that is unacceptable and dangerous for the political stability, on the other.

As for the journalists and the media, the prosecutor is to investigate their ‘moral responsibility’.
Newspaper To Vima  published on Friday the names of three more former deputy ministers.
Reactions
The majority of the politicians on the list publicly asserted their innocence and insisted that they have nothing of illegal assets or properties to hide. Palriament Speaker Evenagelos Meiramarakis published his income declarations 1989-2011, while the former major of Athens, Nikitas Kalamanis brought to television studio copies of money transfers.
Some fired threatens against those who they believed they were behind the leaks and many demanded the resignation of the head of the SDOE.
However quite a number of politicians chose the silence. “No comment”, so to say.
The political world and the public are puzzled about the motive of those leaking the lists.
The public suspects, the alleged real  list might contain many more names. Debt-ridden and austerity-hit Greeks living in a disdained political system tend to believe that those politicians who got bribes and got rich over the years were not just 36 or 40 people.
Of course, some of the politicians on the lists could be simply victims of malicious and anonymous complaints.
Thefore, some media see in the leaked lists an attempt to ‘darken the truth’,  while the whole thing has “a shadow of suspicion” and “a shadow of protection.”
Sure is, that since last Sunday, when the first three politicians were accused,  the lists are updated on a daily basis.
PS Wondering if the list will get the lenght of Britannica at the end of the …week? month? year?