The political instrumentalisation of judicial cases does not do a service to democracy. Unfortunately, the SYRIZA-Independent Greeks government succumbed to the temptation.
On the contrary, its promise to abolish the bailout memorandum with one article in one law was not merely vacuous, but in fact led to a new bailout memorandum. What was left to bank on was the war with the supposed “old system”, against which those in power have issued a blanket condemnation on grounds of corruption.
There are many indicative examples. The leadership of the justice ministry had pre-announced the prosecution of politicians stemming from the Novartis scandal. Another minister told a SYRIZA party organ that “some people have to be put in jail for us to win the elections.”
Associates of the former corruption prosecutor said that someone in the government, who is described as “Rasputin”, and is charged with employing the methods of a “pimp”, exerted pressures on her to launch prosecution in cases with insufficient evidence, and would say, “You prosecute, and let them go on to be acquitted.”
All this points to the fact that the PM’s office is employing a method of political survival, which even the US President appeared to understand is only deleterious.
“For example, those engaged in the political arena must stop treating political opponents as unethical,” he said, in reference to the explosive devices that reached a number of Democrat politicians.
The Greek Prime Minister, for his part, insists on this dangerous generalisation, as was made clear by the remarks of his government spokesman.
By serving the populist and anti-political slogan “Everyone is on the take”, he is erring on many levels, because when you cultivate disdain for the entire political system, it is certain that such a generalisation will one day come along and knock on your own door.
