Athens, Greece — A tough-right lawmaker has changed a fellow right-winger and political heavyweight accused of fraud as migration and asylum minister in Greece’s authorities, a authorities spokesman introduced Saturday.
Thanos Plevris, 48, is succeeding Makis Voridis, 60, who resigned Friday to defend himself towards allegations that he was probably concerned in an organized fraud scheme to supply farm subsidies to undeserving recipients.
The European Public Prosecutor’s Workplace, which has investigated the case, handed on a hefty file to the Greek Parliament that features allegations of potential involvement of presidency ministers. Members of Parliament take pleasure in immunity from prosecution in Greece that may solely be lifted by parliamentary vote.
In his resignation letter, Voridis denied appearing illegally and mentioned he’s resigning to clear his identify. He famous that in his tenure as agricultural improvement and meals minister from July 2019 and January 2021, he capped particular person subsidies and launched a document variety of investigations. His detractors say these very actions are proof that he was conscious of the corrupt subsidies system and did nothing to reform it.
On Friday, 4 different lawmakers, three of whom had previously served as deputy ministers within the Agricultural Coverage Ministry, in addition to a present deputy minister, additionally resigned. Their replacements had been additionally introduced Saturday by authorities spokesman Pavlos Marinakis, who added they are going to be sworn in Monday.
No adjustments are anticipated to be seen in Greece’s robust migration coverage below Plevris who, like Voridis and present well being minister Adonis Georgiadis, joined the conservative New Democracy in 2012, leaving the right-populist Fashionable Orthodox Rally, or LAOS.
Earlier than LAOS, Voridis had been the chief of the youth wing of the far-right Nationwide Political Union, appointed to the put up by jailed former dictator George Papadopoulos. He had changed Nikos Michaloliakos, who went on to discovered the neo-Nazi Golden Daybreak occasion and who’s at present serving a jail time period for main what courts termed a “legal gang.”
Voridis based his personal far-right occasion, Hellenic Entrance, and took half in a number of municipal and nationwide elections between 1994 and 2004. In 2000, he allied himself with Plevris’ father Konstantinos, a lawyer, far-right activist and self-styled “proud fascist.” Voridis joined LAOS in 2006 and has been a lawmaker since 2007.
Voridis is taken into account a political heavyweight and, if not for his far-right and typically violent previous, he would have been thought of a potential conservative chief, politicians and pundits agree. He now describes himself as an financial liberal and a “non-extreme” nationalist.