Two top brasses of the new Greek coalition government are in hospital – the Prime Minister and the designated Finance Minister. After an eye surgery Antonis Samaras has been ordered to stay at home. Vassilis Rapanos’ conditions are surrounded by a mystery. Rumors are high, he may not be sworn-in after all. The Troika, originally due to visit Athens today, postponed its visit for a later date. The Parliament has not opened yet for the new legislative period, elected MPs are expected to take their oath on Thursday.
Important outstanding issues like the programme of the Greek government to revise the loan agreement urgently need negotiations with the countr’s lenders.
Crucial decisions like on banks recapitalisation and privatizations are delayed. And worries are intensified as the new Greek government makes a rather bad start.
All this happens one full week after the June 17 elections, two months after Greece finally manages to get an elected government.
EU Summit Delegation
With both the PM and the FinMin in the hospital an alternate delegation will represent Greece in the EU Summit on upcoming Thursday and Friday: Foreign Minister Avramopoulos, still caretaker Finance Minister Zannias, alternate FinMin Staikouras and Development Hatzidakis. The EU is disappointed because after two months they were expected to meet with the highest level representatives of Greece.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is expected to exit the hospital on Monday afternoon. Ten minutes before seven, he will have a telephone conversation with US-President Barack Obama.
Samaras underwent an eye surgery for detached retina on Saturday. His doctors ordered him a 10-day long rest at home and a strict restriction of movements.
Rumors about FinMin Rapanos
As for Vassilis Rapanos… here things seem to get really complicated. As it is still not known what was the health cause that sent him to hospital on Friday, several rumors are been circulating in the Greek media. Rapanos had in the past a problem with his stomach, however the gastroscopy on Monday showed everything was OK.
Some Sunday newspaper claimed that Rapanos was disappointed not to see some technocrats he was favoring in the coalition government ND-PASOK-DEMOCRATIC LEFT and that he is searching for a way to ‘escape’.
“Rapanos had got assurances by the three coalition party leaders that technocrats like Zannias, Yiannitsis and Stournaras would be in the government. However after he agreed to participate in the government he saw that neither of them was assigned to nay ministerial post. However had he withdrew his participation after his name was given to the press, that would have been a big blow to the image of the new government.” (Proto Thema)
Was the governmental “post-traumatic” stress and discomfort that sent Rapanos to the hospital? Nobody can really say.
Monday’s newspapers are full with rumors that he may not even be sworn-in after all, and the three coalition partners would have to pick up somebody else for the ‘electric chair” of the Greek Finance Ministry.
In its frontpage article with title “Rapanos: Regulator of Developments” daily Ethnos claims that Samaras’s staff is not sure whether Rapanos would take an oath as Finance Minister.
Noone at the Maximos Mansion [PM’s office] is sure that the President of the National Bank will eventually accept the invitation of the PM and will be sworn-in as FinMin.
Government officials who visited him at the private hospital, refrained from discussing the issue with him awaiting for the medical tests to be concluded. However a feeling is spread that should he not join Samaras’ economic team, given his health condition and the surprise by the government composition, balances would immediately change.
Well informed sources told Ethnos that Rapanos will first see the results of the medical tests and after these hi ewill give the final answer to the PM. The communication between the two men will largely judge the government’s immediate future.
Members of the Cabinet admit that Rapanos was surprised when informed of the composition of the government. (ETHNOS)
Rapanos has close relations to PASOK and that it is claimed that his name was proposed by DEMLEFT.
According to latest information of ANT1TV, Rapanos is expected to exit the hospital tomorrow Tuesday and that there is no scenario of him leaving the government.
However Rapanos cannot be sworn-in before the weekend. Greek media claim, the Finance Minister cannot be sworn-in without the presence of the Prime Minister who cannot attend the ceremony due to doctors’ orders.
However ther eis one more crucial point: The country cannot have two Finance Ministers at the same time: one (Zannias) representing Greece at the EU Summit in Brussels, one (Rapanos) in Athens.
The Troika
The Troika (IMF/EU/ECB) postponed its visit to Athens for a later date – most possible on July 2nd, when the issue with the Finance Minister will be solved and the Prime Minister will have fully recovered.
Meanwhile a government from the German government said on Monday that no decision will be taken on Greece during the EU Summit.
Greece’s lenders seem to have plenty of time, but Greece? Does it have time too?
PS With so much uncertainty and so many delays, no wonder Athens Stock Exchange is on plunging course on Monday. At 01:20 pm the General Index show 582.78 points and -4.21%
To paraphrase Oscar Wilde on the EU summit debacle of Greek participation:
“To lose one representative may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.”
And I can’t help but wonder if the report by the permanent Troika (See To Vima yesterday)team in Athens showing that Greece recruited 70,000 civil servants in 2010-2011 and another 12,000 through appointments in local authorities has something to do with the boys throwing a sicky? After all, didn’t Samaras personally agree to ensuring that the country would lose 150,000 civil servants, and didn’t he sign to make sure this and the other requirements of the MoU would be adhered to?
Looks like he might have been heading for a serious ticking off from the head mistress for not doing his homework. And if Merkel was my head mistress, I would definitely throw a sicky to avoid this confrontation.
hiring staff is a small problem when compared to all those other ‘commitments’ they didn’t implement.
As with aged parents, the older they get the more likely you are to lose them.
In the case of Greece, losing them would probably be a good thing.
I agree, but it is the main one the permanent Troika team was going to highlight to their bosses had they come to visit today. they probably haven’t managed to quantity the other yet…
what is the profit of delaying the inevitable (Troika visit?)
Nothing, but ostrich behaviour is very common amongst politicians world wide. Just look at the whole Euro mess…
At least ostriches are good for eating. I dread to think of the health problems you would get after eating a politician. High cholesterol, damaged neuron activity, enlargement of the brain’s frontal lobe (where the ego supposedly is located), the list is endless!
Well, to quote another Wilde and my personal favorite, “Ambition is the last refuge of failure”, so by not trying too hard, the Greek government will be given another chance to try again.
Hahahaha. Shall we start an Oscar Wilde quotes tread? How about
“But, my dear, you have all the freedom I care to give you…”
how about ‘frankly, my dear, I don’t give a dam?” lol – not oscar wilde, but it could be
Well, KTG and eliphant, I know KTG doesn’t want us to keep this Oscar Wilde fest going, but I couldn’t resist and blame Wilde for this because his quote regarding this says it all…
“I can resist everything except temptation.” Oscar Wilde from Lady Windermere’s Fan.