Tsipras: It is a national crime that out of 14 billion in armaments in 2 years, not one euro has been given to the Greek industry

SYRIZA president Alexis Tsipras spoke of a national crime who visited earlier today the ODA. As he said, it is a national crime that out of 14 billion armament programs in two years, not one euro has been given to the Greek industry and he pledged to renegotiate contracts, so that this can change.

After the meeting with the management and employees of the ODA, the President of SYRIZA PS, Alexis Tsipras, made the following statement:

“I had the opportunity today to take a tour of the facilities of the Hellenic Aviation Industry, one of the few heavy industries in the country.
And I had the pleasure of seeing that the two armament programs, which we had concluded as a government in very difficult circumstances, are both here. The upgrade of 84 F 16 aircraft to Viper, as well as the upgrade of 4 P 3 naval cooperation aircraft.
Since then, the country has embarked on armaments programs amounting to 14 billion euros in the last two years. But not a single euro has been given to the national war industry. This is a national crime. The country is not a country bordering Luxembourg or Belgium. It will always need to have its armed forces in constant deterrence and readiness. It is inconceivable that it does not strengthen the defense war industry, even more so when its obsolescence is a political choice.
We therefore consider it necessary, and it is our commitment, that there will be, if SYRIZA – PS comes to government, a renegotiation of the contracts, so that there is participation of the Greek military industry in the new programs.
Also, we consider it necessary to have a new institutional framework that will give possibilities to the ODA and to all enterprises of the military defense industry. Possibilities of flexibility in terms of purchase, but also employee support.
We plan to establish a special undersecretary and general secretariat to oversee the defense war industry. And at the same time, we believe that it cannot be the workers here within the framework of the uniform salary.
We must support the defense industry, support the possibility that the country can save resources from armament programs – many of them are necessary – because otherwise it will not be able to be competitive. Because we must have a strong deterrent capability in the armed forces, but at the same time maintain the ability not to go beyond our budget, not to waste resources that are extremely useful for the national economy.”

Earlier, the president of SYRIZA – PS, Alexis Tsipras, had meetings with both the management and the employees of the ODA. The president of the company’s employees conveyed to the leader of the official opposition the tragic situation in which both the company and its employees have fallen due to the policies of the Mitsotakis government.
The president of the workers spoke about the company’s downgrading policy by the Mitsotakis government, saying that “we asked for immediate support for the production of aircraft, such as the C 130, which is an important part of EAB’s production, and now we are in danger of losing even Canadair from the ODA”. While underlining the fact that during the SYRIZA government “the factory took over the Super Puma helicopters”. “We must not forget these” he characteristically said and added that today the Super Pumas are given to Spain and Switzerland with multiple production costs than what they would cost if ODA took over them. “The ODA must be supported because it serves the armed forces with quality construction and safety, but also because it contributes to the country’s economy,” he pointed out, expressing his dissatisfaction with the fact that the current government is not moving in this direction.
In the meeting with Mr. Tsipras, the president of the workers also made serious complaints about the lack of transparency in contracts and the management of resources, even presenting documents that document them. “The current government, instead of supporting the factory financially and removing all the anchorages, brought a scandalous contract for the maintenance of the C 130, where the company that undertook it presented a false certification to the ODA. This is criminal. “We don’t respect the people who fly these planes,” he said characteristically. He also complained that, while the government does not give incentives to employees, as a result of which we have had 200 resignations in the last three years, at the same time it gives thousands of euros to consultants for public relations, etc. “For 9 months, 20,000 euros, 15,000 euros, 30,000 euros and so on… There they have money to give” was the typical reference. While he even denounced staff recruitment with photographic criteria and qualifications that have nothing to do with the requirements of the ODA. “Within the ODA we have seen how this government works,” he said.
Finally, regarding the situation of the workers, he mentioned that permanent staff were to be recruited at the ODA from 2008 – 2009 and at the initiative of the SYRIZA government in 2015 there was disengagement from a large contract, which was a thorn in the side of the factory, and workers were recruited with fixed-term contracts. However, he stressed that the single wage bill does not incentivize workers to work in the ODA and although the first moves were made by the SYRIZA government before 2019, this did not proceed. “We are making announcements for 150 technicians and 100 have expressed interest,” said the president of the workers specifically, while the salaries of those hired are in the range of 650 – 700 euros.

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