SYRIZA: Episodic meeting for the Dawn: Irritation and peaks A. Tsipras, tension by N. Filis

By Niki Zorba

The Political Council of SYRIZA decided yesterday unanimously to maintain the daily newspaper of Avgi through dismissals.

Twenty-four hours ago, the close group of associates of Alexis Tsipras (Political Center) had met where it was decided (not there unanimously) to close the daily newspaper, to strengthen the Sunday newspaper and the website of the newspaper.

What happened to the overthrow in less than 24 hours? The strong reactions of the workers and the apparent heavy political cost for SYRIZA just three months before the holding of its third congress. (By the way, the SYRIZA Conference was decided yesterday to be held on March 31).

The decision to save the daily newspaper became clear yesterday and through competent sources, that it is going through layoffs.

What will be done to consolidate the business with the newspaper on the go, is the exact leak from the headquarters of Koumoundourou, opera also means layoffs in order to make the newspaper financially viable. About 15 redundancies will be needed, experts estimate, while other changes of a technical nature are being considered, such as the daily issue coming out with fewer pages.

Tsipras intervention and the alternative

A few hours (literally a few) before the meeting of the Political Council of SYRIZA that was scheduled for Thursday morning at 10.30, Alexis Tsipras, according to secure information, contacted Lefteris Arvanitis, General Manager of SYRIZA Media, asking him to prepare an alternative plan for the consolidation of Avgi with the changes providing for the maintenance of the daily newspaper.

The same information states that the plan was completed in the early hours of Thursday, five hours before the start of the meeting of the Political Council.

A marathon meeting (slightly over seven hours) is not an unprecedented event for the main opposition party, of course, but it is indicative of the difficulty in making final decisions.

The Political Council started with a “dowry” (from the previous meeting of the political center) a green light, not unanimous, for the closing of the daily newspaper, as it resulted from a leak of the headquarters of Koumoundourou on Friday afternoon.

The initial suggestion of the president of SYRIZA “stepped” on the original plan consolidation by suspending the daily paper asking to be presented if there is another viable solution (he had already talked to Mr. Arvanitis about an alternative plan).

From the side of the internal minority, talk about a change in the attitude of the president during the meeting and while hours of discussion had passed, “showing” very clearly that the reactions of some for the “padlock” on the sheet, brought the change in the attitude of Alexis Tsipras.

The “Umbrella”, however, did not appear in en block positions, for the next day of the newspaper. Panos Skourletis, Nikos Voutsis Nikos Filis, for example, disagreed with the closure, but Euclid Tsakalotos did not bet with them and had separated his position from the beginning, on realistic solutions. Economist and former YPOIK, gar.

The hot episode with Nikos Filis

The atmosphere was energized and Alexis Tsipras (and not only) got angry when Nikos Filis intervened (Head of Education and for years director of Avgi), requesting the formation of a “rescue committee” of Avgi which would essentially supervise the movements of the Administration (Arvanitis, Drossos). He also proposed a new volunteer plan.

Intervention that was a fuse: Mr. Drossos threatened to resign if the proposal for a rescue committee was passed, top executives of SYRIZA and Nikos Filis finally disappeared he was forced to withdraw his proposal in the absence of supporters.

He himself called for “unanimous decisions”. Alexis Tsipras disagreed and allegedly told him “why unanimously? By a majority. Whoever has another proposal, to submit it”. In the end, Philis’s proposals had an ignominious end.

According to an executive who attended the meeting (belongs to the wider presidential side), Nikos Filis said everything, insulting and disparaging party officials, talking about “a group of rogues who seek suffocating control of the party”, causing alginate impressions, which is why it was isolated.

Other member (belonging to the minority) in defense of Nikos Filis, did not dispute the complaint of the head of the Department of Education of SYRIZA regarding the pursuit of suffocating control in a party and a newspaper, but rejected the accusation that he tried to blow up the whole meeting, claiming that on the contrary he sought a “consensual, unanimous solution”.

As is always the case in SYRIZA, the specific issues to be resolved highlight the general (chaotic in some casesdifferences between executives and mutual suspicions. As far as the case is concerned of Avgi for example, some of Alexis Tsipras’s namesake link the decision for deforestation and the initial one for “padlock”, with the goal of the SYRIZA president to move the party to the right, towards the Center.

THE Alexis Tsipras, however, on the basis of cross-referenced information he topped it all off, speaking for some in the party opposition who are trying to exploit the Dawn affair for their own political gain.

Understandable.