New Democracy MP for Fthiotida, Central Greece, Themis Himaras, resigned as a parliamentary deputy on Wednesday following reports he misused state money for the benefit of his business, in violation of the Constitution.
Article 57 of the Constitution of Greece is clear about the business activities of a member of parliament: “The duties of a member of parliament are incompatible with the works or status of owner or partner or shareholder or manager or administrator or member of the board of directors or general manager or the deputies the enterprise, which undertakes projects or studies or procurement of the State”. It defines even more clearly what is included in “Government”, which includes local governments and their businesses.
Therefore, according to the constitution, an MP has the right to participate in companies and carry any of the above qualities, as long as the company has no dealings with the public sector.
Himaras business collected over 400,000 euros
According to media reports over the weekend, Himaras’ business received at least 400,000 euros -since 2019 when he was first elected in the Parliament -from public sector entities for several services it offered and in direct assignments.
In first statements to the press after the scandal was revealed, the now former MP had claimed he had “no idea” and accused his employees for the activities that were illegal
In his resignation letter, Himaras said that he recognized that an “involuntary omission” on his part had placed the party he serves […] in a difficult position. He added that he fully assumed “the responsibility that I bear and announce my resignation from parliamentary office, handing over the seat to New Democracy, as is my obligation.”
Worth noting that neither ruling New Democracy expel Himaras nor the Parliament or Justice launched any control procedures for the illegal activities.
He will be replaced in the Parliament by another local politician.
Uproar in opposition parties
The resignation sparked an uproar among opposition parties that see a cover-up effort if no further consequences
SYRIZA MEP Dimitris Papadimoulis wrote on Twitter”
“Himaras’s resignation of #Heimaras cannot wash away the looting at the expense of public money, with direct assignments and the violation of the Constitution. […] He must return the money he took in violation of the Constitution. The Justice and the competent authorities should look for administrative and criminal responsibilities for the orgy of direct assignments.” He urged the PM to expel the ex MP.
Ο #Χειμαρας οφείλει να επιστρέψει τα χρήματα που πήρε παραβιάζοντας το Σύνταγμα. Η Δικαιοσύνη κ οι αρμόδιες αρχές να ψάξουν για διοικητικές και ποινικές ευθύνες για το όργιο των απευθείας αναθέσεων. Και ο σιωπών #Μητσοτακης να τον διαγράψει από την #ΝΔ έστω κ με χρονοκαθυστέρηση!
— Dim. Papadimoulis (@papadimoulis) January 4, 2023
PASOK-KINAL said in a statement: “For five days, Mr. Mitsotakis plucked the daisy avoiding even an informal comment of disapproval of his MP Themis Heimaras, who violated the Constitution with contracts of hundreds of thousands of euros with local government organizations. It is now clear to Greek citizens that the “staff state” is nothing more than a mechanism to serve interests at the expense of the Greek people without any sense of shame.”
Communist KKE said:”People use to say that since the apology invented, the honor has been lost. In this case, not only the honor of the MP himself and the party he belongs to has been lost, but there is an attempt to the repeated phenomenon of businessmen-MPs and deals – illegal and legal – with the state is ‘forgoten’. This constitutes one more side of the decay of the bourgeois political system.”
MeRA25 spokesman said “Another ‘excellent’ person in the businesses of Mitsotakis SA, Mr. Heimaras allegedly unknowingly did businesses with the State worth hundreds of thousands of euros.The rot and decline is the totality of the “liberal” anti-state of the government”.
Themis Himaras is the third ND MP since the 2019 elections “caught” to have misused public money while in “service of the people.”
