The three-day parliamentary debate ended tonight with the majority of MPs voting in favor of the Greek coalition government. 155 MPs voted ‘yes,’ 131 voted ‘no’ and 2 voted ‘present.’ As the parliamentary debate over the vote of confidence began, internal divisions within the New Democracy (ND) and PASOK parties deepened, threatening government unity. Perhaps more significant, however, is the displeasure displayed by numerous ND MPs at Greece ‘s Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ controversial decision to appoint Health Minister Makis Voridis as his representative in parliament. Such concerns were expressed by Dora Bakoyiannis, who is known to favor a centrist approach. She recently stated that she felt the Prime Minister should be present at the debate, in a thinly veiled criticism of the prominent role given to Voridis. There was also reportedly friction within ND’s parliamentary group, with some MPs criticizing Voridis’ use of language that was reminiscent of the 1950s. Furthermore, several ND MPs were noticeably absent from his speech while others chose not to applaud him. Yesterday, it was Voridis who started the debate, making the case that Samaras’ government was on track to the end the Memorandum a year and a half ahead of schedule. Voridis made no effort to tone down his right-wing rhetoric, launching an attack towards SYRIZA in particular that would make many centrists squirm. He warned about the threat of ‘communism’ and accused the opposition party of ‘hate speech’ that had stoked political tensions and therefore contributed to the murder of anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas by Golden Dawn (GD) supporter. His argument fell in line with previous arguments made by ND in favor of the ‘theory of the two extremes’ that effectively sought to equate the behavior of leftist groups such as SYRIZA with that of the militant neo-fascists. The accusation provoked an angry response from SYRIZA who claimed that ND was in the pocket of influential business figures. The opposition party also pointed at ND’s own ties with GD, particularly through the former government general secretary Takis Baltakos. During his speech tonight, at the closing of the three-day debate, Samaras wanted to pass the message to the Greek society that the country is entering a new phase of growth and stability, and that injustices of the past in the field of economic policy will be restored. The Prime Minister stressed that the Greece does not need an additional bailout program and that it will be perfectly capable of handling its finances without external help. He commented that the negotiation with the country’s creditors is heading towards a positive completion and the sacrifices of the Greek people will finally bear fruit. He also pointed out that no new fiscal measures will be imposed on Greek citizens. Samaras launched a fierce attack towards SYRIZA and its leader Alexis Tsipras, accusing them of frightening society. Tsipras, on his part, accused Samaras of lying to the Greek people over the country’s Memorandum exit. The leftist opposition leader maintained his position that the Prime Minister has consented to the country’s creditors’ efforts to keep Greece bound to policies dictated by the Memorandum.
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