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ND lawmaker: “Water is unacceptable cheap”. Hikes under way?

Where there is smoke, there is fire. In this case: there is water. Precisely, possible hikes in the water price, if one takes seriously the statements by New Democracy MP at the Sub-Committee on Water Resources earlier on Thursday.

ND MP Babis Papadimitriou said that the water is “unacceptably cheap” and triggered a storm of reactions and fears that hikes in the water are due.

The MP linked the waste of water due to the low prices and said “if water was more expensive, water waste would be reduced,” he added.

He said further that “municipalities have not yet been able to find a policy on the basic issue of pricing. Water is unfortunately unacceptably cheap, its wastage is outrageous, and its treatment is almost infrequent even in small towns, where things have to be much more careful there.”

“The way water is currently supplied is at prices that do not promote rational and proper use of water. This is a huge problem because it has not been explained how this should be done and why municipalities may not have the resources. I think we need to take the initiative to explain why water must be priced right. ”

Papadimitriou’s comments triggered strong reactions as the former Sκai TV journalist is known for his support to the country’s lenders, privatization and neo-liberal policies.

Not a few saw an kind of warm-up for prices hikes in the water, following those in electricity.

“The statements suggest negative developments,” main opposition party SYRIZA said stressing that after the hikes in electricity, ND is now targeting another public good.”

The biting comment came by a member of the Central Committee of SYRIZA.

“Water is public good and as such it must be cheap and accessible to everyone. If for ND MP Papadimitriou is “unacceptable cheap” he can purchase Filico, water in unique designed bottles decorated with Swarovski crystals.”

A little later, Papadimitriou said that he is not in charge to announce price hikes and describe the criticism as “political speculation.” There are no price hikes and no privatization of the water, he added.

PS Between you and me: SYRIZa fought hardto exempt the water companies in Athens and Thessaloniki from the privatization plans of the country’s lenders.

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7 comments

  1. hey babi, f**k off. In my village the water belonged to US, two wells on private property that were dug with private money and lots of physical labor way back in the way, then in a community spirit first shared (long ago) and then donated (still couple generations ago) to the village. Then along comes the state, and they declare the community is abolished and the property of the community (including those wells) is now somehow the property of the municipality! just like that!
    and since then, of course they reefuse to do any maintenance on the water system they stole from us, though theyre quite happy to charge us for it! the water never belonged to you, and i can only say i hope i live long enough to see you and your kind dying of thirst when all your hollow houses of cards collapse, begging for a drop of water, so i can tell you ‘why dont you drink all that money!’

  2. I have a lot of sympathy with the view that water is wasted. It certainly is here on Crete where I see many people washing their balconies with a running hose pipe. The river of wasted water flowing down the road should be a sign of shame. There is even a periptero near me where the lady owner uses a hose pipe every morning to wash not just her floor area but the whole road for several meters each way!

    I grew up in the UK where it rains a lot more than it does here, yet we learned to mop up balconies and patios with a mop and bucket – 2 litres of water instead of 200 litres…..

    • no rain, lots of dust. i can understand the periptero lady, if the municipality fails to keep the roads clean.

  3. My neighbor comes out even in winter and washes outside the propertys near her and the road,all theoldl ladies in my road do and I get named and shamed because I dont.They are on the meter but dont care because it is affordable,maybe it shouldnt be,however they are sooo bored that they dont care the price.But the water companies here do not do what they should being doing…collecting all the rain water..There is a mountain village called Pissia near Loutraki and the beautiful mountain water is still running down even in August,it is not coolected and just runs away to nowhere,this all over Greece,shame on the incompetant devils,they then have the cheek to tell consumers..its too cheap,they must be correct themselves then tell us.One day these women will have to use two litres of water to wash their balcony not one hundred

    • We just spent a month on Samos at a friend’s house in Karlovasi. The woman who owned the house next door ran the water with a hose EVERY DAY for at least an hour and often more than two. Apparently water is paid to the municipality;ΕΥΔΑΠ does not cover the island. This is sn exsmple of gross abusd of water use.

      On the same note I vaguely remember an alotment system of water based on number of people in household.. Or was that something just discussed but never actually put into practice? Wiih the danger to the groundwater supply in Greece we must find a way to ensure all the people of the country the basic right to water while protecting this our most precious resource

  4. I agree with him. A lot of places in Greece have water which is “unlimited” so there is no meters. People are watering crops, letting it run all day, etc.. and then in the evening the water pressure is bad and sometimes people have no water. Nobody is saying price water like it’s gold but you can’t have farmer George watering 300 tomato plants every night. Clean, fresh water is not an unlimited resource.

  5. If it was a water rep. talking I would understand, could be just an increase because of maintenance cost. But someone from the gov’t just calling for a tax hike – with no proceeds going towards the water company and we just get the shaft.