Athens News Agency: News in English, 08-07-17

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Karamanlis rejects Papandreou criticism, proposals for transparency

[02] Bank Association event

[01] Karamanlis rejects Papandreou criticism, proposals for transparency

In a letter addressed to the PASOK leader, Karamanlis also expressed hope that the main opposition party will eventually cooperate in the setting up of such cross-party committee, which the government proposed for consolidating transparency in public life.

"The cross-party committee which I have proposed is based on the formation of a comprehensive proposal, with the participation of all political forces and capitalising on all fertile ideas for further consolidating transparency in public life, particularly parties' internal structure; transparency regarding their operation and electoral costs; their financing from the state budget and the reinforcement of transparency as regards eventual private funds," Karamanlis notes in his letter.

"One may draw useful conclusions from recent public confessions by officials of your party regarding (the taking of) necessary measures. In no case, however, can the functioning of the proposed cross-party committee be linked to or confused with the on-going judicial investigation," the premier adds.

Karamanlis further stresses in his letter that "pretentious hastiness is completely incomprehensible when it comes from you, who has not hesitated, for reasons of political weakness, to undermine the supreme Parliamentary process, that of Constitutional revision, thus rendering today impossible both the constitutional consolidation of transparency procedures and the implementation of proposals which you are putting forward, and which you have, supposedly, considered imperative.

"Despite all the above, you are now demanding the convening of a political leaders' council on issues of transparency, which, in my opinion - and you know that - can be dealt with in the best possible way within the framework of parliamentary procedures through the cross-party committee proposed by me."

The prime minister also reiterated the government�s position that a Parliament investigating committee would be set up "in order to reveal and not to cover up".

"The real achievement of this target imposes that (judicial) investigation be first completed," the premier adds.

"Taking into consideration all the above, it is evident that there is no reason for convening a special parliamentary plenum. This will convene, according to schedule, in October," Karamanlis said.

The premier also charged, in the last remark of his letter, the main opposition leader has been making "effortless and groundless references to 'institutional derailments' and an 'inertia of Parliament' while you continue attacks against the judiciary."

"I am obliged to underline that nobody has the right to continuously attempt the questioning of the institutions and of our Democratic Regime. We must all, even the leader of the main opposition, respect institutions. More so, the Greek Parliament, which is the heart of Democracy, and independent justice," Karamanlis concludes.

PASOK response

Rspondin the prime minster PASOK spokesman George Papaconstantinou reiterated his party's accusations saying that ?Mr. Karamanlis remains at the logic of suspension and cover-up."

[02] Bank Association event

Addressing an event organized by the Hellenic Bank Association, on ?The recent international financial crisis?, Gkikas Hardouvelis, a Professor at the University of Piraeus, said that under the optimistic scenario the crisis will not have any great negative effects, the second scenario said that the crisis will have significant negative effects on world economic growth, while no one knows when this crisis will end. Under the third scenario, the crisis will be prolonged hitting hard world economic growth rates and financial markets as well. ?The crisis will continue,? Hardouvelis said, adding that the situation today is far more dramatic compared with October 2007, because the inflation factor has been added, he noted. An emerging problem with global stagflation is a deeper phenomenon and 2009 will be a difficult year with even slower economic growth rates, he stressed.

He forecast that economic growth would top 3.0 pct this year in Greece, to fall below 3.0 pct in 2009, while average inflation would total 4.5 percent in 2008. Gkikas Hardouvelis said Greece still faced a bigger problems: that of permanent slower growth rates. He said that the Greek economy was bound to land because of its very big current accounts deficit (at 14 pct of GDP last year) and its dramatically low competitiveness, but these two global negative crises have brought this landing a bit earlier.

Charles Calomikis, a Professor at Columbia University of New York, also addressed the event, saying he was optimistic that the US economy would recover, but noted that Europe still faced problems with low competitiveness and productivity.

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