SW for investigation: The non-existence of both criminal and political responsibilities was proved

“They went to SYRIZA for wool and… came out with a haircut,” say the ND MPs, members of the commission of inquiry to investigate the operation of political manipulation of public opinion, humiliation of institutions and waste of public money, and stress that “the the absence of both criminal and political responsibilities of politicians for the cases in question, while once again the attempt of the Official Opposition to weave scandals and to politically and morally tarnish its opponents failed miserably “.

“From all the evidence gathered during the meetings of the selection board, it emerged in the loudest way that the information campaign” Stay Home – Stay Safe “was absolutely legal and necessary. It also turned out that it was carried out with transparent It has been widely hailed as a major bulwark against the spread of false news, conspiracy theories and misinformation, as well as the slightest suspicion that the government allegedly tried to fund the media during the pandemic by using the campaign “As far as the vaccination campaign is concerned, it has been clearly shown that it was done in full transparency and legitimacy without any political intervention to exclude anyone,” said ND MPs, members of the committee in detail that:

“SYRIZA’s operation to tarnish the government for allegedly wasting public money and manipulating public opinion through polls, through information campaigns for covid 19, collapsed like a paper tower.

The New Democracy as a liberal and democratic faction is particularly proud of its choice to include in the Revision of the Constitution a provision by which the current official opposition gained the possibility of setting up a committee of inquiry as a parliamentary minority. At the same time, he feels justified as SYRIZA’s attempt to slander the government was fully highlighted by the testimonies and evidence of the work of the examination committee.

From all the evidence gathered during the meetings of the examination committee, it emerged in the loudest way that the information campaign of the citizens “Stay Home-Stay Safe” was absolutely legal and necessary. It also emerged that it was carried out through transparent procedures and had a great impact on public opinion as a strong bulwark against the spread of false news, the spread of conspiracy theories and misinformation.

In addition, the slightest suspicion that the government allegedly tried to fund the media during the pandemic, using the media campaign to influence them positively, was dispelled. As far as the vaccination campaign is concerned, it has been clearly shown that it was done with full transparency and legitimacy without any political intervention to exclude someone.

For the case regarding the strategy of the Greek company Investments and Foreign Trade SA (Initiative Media) it was proved that it was conducted in accordance with the regulatory framework for public procurement while there was no use of the exceptional provisions adopted for the need of the urgent needs created by the pandemic.

It has been blatantly proven that the government has never given guidelines for drafting this contract.

Regarding the polls, from the testimonies of the witnesses and the documents they submitted, it emerged that for the company Opinion Poll there was no appeal to the Audit Authority or a complaint regarding its polls conducted in contrast to the companies Vox Pop and Common View for which the Audit Authority examined issues and forwarded them to the National Broadcasting Council.

In addition, there have been no complaints against Opinion Poll in its twelve years of operation.

Throughout the committee of inquiry, SYRIZA engaged in a witch-hunt to cover up its glaring inability to articulate political discourse and proposals on a crucial issue, such as pandemic management by adhering to ideologies and populism.

The ten main conclusions that emerged with the completion of the work of this committee of inquiry are the following:

1. All the work for the assignment, execution and completion of the necessary information campaign was completely transparent and legal.

2. The objectives of the information campaign were fully achieved, even exceeding the initial estimates of population coverage at a cost significantly lower than other European countries with a similar population.

3. The process of selecting the Media that participated in the covid 19 campaign was done exclusively by Initiative Media which used special computer tools and algorithms to evaluate which Media should participate and which should not. The evaluation of Initiative Media was given to the contracting Authority which approved it based on the know-how of the specific company and its experience in the market.

4. Throughout the campaign there was not the slightest political pressure to add or reject Media by any government official. Besides, in the “list” with the Media, participated Media that traditionally support the policy of SYRIZA without exclusion.

5. During the delivery of the contract work, all the necessary information was provided to prove that the information project was actually carried out by the media participating in the campaign. In terms of local and regional instruments, the total budgeted expenditure reached 26.44% as stipulated in the contract that it should have been explicitly agreed to be at least more than 20%.

6. The criteria set for the participation of the media in the campaign for the allocation of funds are the usual ones that are applied in each campaign in order to achieve the highest benefit for the citizens. The amount of advertising expenditure was low compared to similar initiatives, while it emerged that a corresponding advertising expenditure had been incurred for the campaign related to the Prespa Agreement, although only 39 Media participated.

7. Pluralism was achieved as 272 publications participated while there was not the slightest complaint to the institution of the Athens Daily Newspaper Owners Association (EIEA) regarding the procedure. At the same time, there was not the slightest attempt to manipulate the media due to his participation in the campaign. After all, the funds were small for each Instrument separately so that there is even the suspicion of an attempt at manipulation.

8. Regarding the exclusion of the newspaper Documento, an issue which mainly occupied the SYRIZA MPs who participated in the Inquiry, it emerged that this publication does not announce its circulation in order to have quantitative criteria and on the other hand is not a member of the Association of Daily Newspaper Owners. Athens. At the same time, however, its content during the period in question was in stark contrast to the coronavirus messages sent by the campaign. Characteristically, he had articles entitled “From To Menoume Spati, to Menoume Tapi”, “Koronovios-Koroidovios”, “Maska-muzzle” etc., which undermined the collective effort to take protection measures.

9. The payment of the Media was made by the Ministry of Finance after first all the invoices were fully checked together with the evidence of the publications. Initiative Media made all the negotiations on the financial terms and conditions of announcement and registration, the necessary space reservations, the monitoring of the execution of the project and its report.

10. For Opinion Poll there was no appeal to the Polling Audit Authority or a complaint regarding its conducted polls.

In conclusion, all the work of the committee proved once again the irresponsibility, the catastrophizing and the undermining of the national effort by SYRIZA at a time when the government with a high sense of responsibility is working to preserve public health. informing citizens and shielding the economy.

“Without a doubt, the non-existence of both criminal and political responsibilities of politicians for the cases in question was proved, while once again the attempt of the Official Opposition to weave scandals and to politically and morally tarnish its opponents was completely defeated.”

Source: AMPE