Greeks express support for Syriza just days before snap elections
Constantine Venizelos
Press TV, Athens
Greeks have rallied in their tens of thousands in Athens to support the Coalition of the Radical Left, known as SYRIZA. The leftist party’s popularity rocketed by 25 percent in the last seven years of the spiraling financial insolvency. Public opinion polls say the party is set to win the upcoming national vote with a clear majority.
If elected into office, SYRIZA says it will stop Greece’s dependency on relief loans and austerity measures in return for bailout funds.
EU officials and financial institutions say Athens’ failure to honor its commitments under the previously-agreed austerity regimes lead Greece to default on its 240 billion euros debt thus switching to its former national currency away from the euro.
Only 10 percent of the funds Greece borrowed in the last five years found its way to the national treasury, the rest was absorbed by the country's private banks to stay afloat.
In a climate of political brinkmanship between SYRIZA and Greece’s creditors, a final bailout review is expected at the end of February. The outcome will depend largely on a SYRIZA claim to seek a partial write-off of Greece’s debt.
Including the national vote on January 25th, Greeks have been called to the ballot box five times since 2007, electing a pro-austerity government on all four previous occasions. The upcoming election, however, could show Greeks are ready to put the neo-liberal European economic policy to the test.
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