Local thermometers have gone red. Not only in terms of temperatures (40-41°C today) but also in political-economical. Greece’s coalition government is in the middle of a race with an award of 33 billion euro waving at the end of the road. The country’s lender’s are standing at the finish with a sardonic smile: in order to give the 33-billion-euro bailout tranche due in August, Greece’s has to deliver a full package containing austerity measures worth 11.5 billion euro – for the years 2013-2014.
While the three coalition government leaders are swinging around the Troika, the citizens are holding their breath, awaiting for additional austerity measures that will set anew their households on fire and further exploit their pockets.
Government partners Samaras, Venizleos and Kouvelis, together Finance Minister Stournaras are constantly changing the pawns on the measures chessboard trying to bypass some Troika’s proposals and invent so-called “equivalent expenditure cuts”.
The three leaders seem to converge to some points and disagree on others. Venizelos from PASOK and Kouvelis from Democratic Left met on Monday morning and apparently built a common front. They have reportedly agreed upon on where the cuts should be made and where they should not. The two fully support the idea of an extra time to meet fiscal targets.
The biggest pitfall seems to be new cuts in pensions, wages and social benefits as well as the new increase of the retirement age, that could cover all workers, regardless of when they started to work.
These are also claims that the 13th and 14th wages should be scrapped from the public sector.
However as lots of measures have been leaked to the press but have not been officially confirmed yet, we should be cautious as to whether these are real ‘measures’ or just pieces of cheese to be offered to debt-ridden Greeks thus minimizing the political cost for the political leaders festively announcing a successful negotiation with the Troika.
All three political leaders allegedly oppose these measures and an agreement on these issues is hardly expected to be reached today. Samaras, Venizelos and Kouvelis are due to meet at 6 pm on Monday.
The Troika’s representatives have allegedly warned the Greek government, that they would not leave unless the austerity package is concluded and all the pawns have got their final position.
As the Troika seems to spend August in Greece, we might meet them at some remote beach around Athens 🙂
“As the Troika seems to spend August in Greece, we might meet them at some remote beach around Athens”
Doubtful. They’ve probable already “bought” it of Greece as part of the “privatization package” and Greeks will not be allowed on it anymore, unless it’s to do some badly paid job like clean up after the elite has left. And smile while you’re at it, you should be glad and forever thankful to have a job!
job? what job?
the one you may be allowed to have if you’re a good little Greek who behaves as commanded and doesn’t talk back, or simply doesn’t talk…
I do not talk anyway. I just write 🙂