“The elections of May 21 are an important national election,” emphasizes Dora Bakoyannis to APE-MPE.

At the same time, he emphasizes that the ND will respect the constitutional order, while he notes that this scenario of the “government of the defeated” is an actual one, despite the denials of Alexis Tsipras.

“The country and the citizens have in the past received assurances from SYRIZA only to see them collapse,” he says.

Additionally, she refers to the ND program for the next four years and in Greek-Turkish while sending her message to the voters of her constituency in Chania.

The entire interview of the ND candidate in the prefecture of Chania, Doras Bakoyannis to APE-MPE and Nikos Armenis:

Q: If the ND’s lead that we see in the polls is confirmed in the May 21 ballot, will you seek to form a coalition government or are the second ballots in July certain?

AP: New Democracy faces the May 21 ballot responsibly and seriously. The elections of May 21 are crucial because they will determine who will rule the country, they will determine the future of Greece for years to come. It is not one of the many polls, it is not a rehearsal for elections, we are not going to experiment, as the opposition experiments. It is the important national ballot. As you know, we do not believe in simple proportionality because we believe that the country needs a stable steering wheel. From then on, however, as a responsible political force, we will respect the constitutional order. We will follow the constitutional procedures and we will be responsible towards the citizens and the trust they show us. The primacy of New Democracy will be an order for us but also a message for the opposition.

Q: Why do you insist that the “government of the losers” scenario exists even though Mr. Tsipras, Mr. Androulakis and Mr. Varoufakis deny it?

AP: Simple proportionality was devised by SYRIZA four years ago, after being elected twice with enhanced proportionality, and it is something that the opposition relies on, ignoring the practical difficulties, which are of a political nature and simple mathematics. Mr. Tsipras can deny it, but the question is what credibility does such a statement by Mr. Tsipras or Mr. Varoufakis have. The country and citizens have received assurances from SYRIZA in the past only to see them crumble. Therefore, and given the disagreement of executives within SYRIZA on this very issue, it is clear that there is neither credibility nor certainty. The day before yesterday, Mr. Tsipras even spoke about a government with tolerance of parties. On the other hand, Mr. Androulakis cannot answer with certainty who will be prime minister the next day, let alone convince us of any of his intentions.

Q: On Wednesday you presented the ND government program for the next four years and one of your commitments is the convergence of wages with the European average. How will you convince the citizens that you will actually keep this promise?

AP: Listen, it is not New Democracy that has a credibility problem. This is SYRIZA’s problem, and the citizens are well aware of this. The New Democracy, as a government for the last four years, put into practice its commitments. The pre-election program of 2019 was implemented, and even under difficult conditions that could be a reason for a deviation. But that didn’t happen. On the contrary, we adapted to the needs, to the crises, and implemented everything we had promised. We said we would cut taxes, we did. We said we would reduce unemployment, we did. We created 300,000 new jobs, tripled the minimum wage and upgraded the work and business environment with investment, innovation and digital tools. The citizen can expect this certainty, this reliability from us, and from our program the day after the elections.

Q: What message do you want to send to undecided voters across the country and to voters in your constituency, Chania?

AP: Initially I would tell them that it is important, it is critical that they vote. Their indecision should not become a weapon in the hands of those who attempt to turn us back. To ask themselves, under what conditions and with which prime minister can our country continue to ensure a stable and growing economy, with social and rewarding policies that are fair and realistic. If the answer to these questions is responsibility, stability and reliability, then the choice of May 21 is only one and it is New Democracy. If they envision a country that is strong, innovative, bold, that creates opportunities, that changes and improves, breaks the molds of the past, that does not look back to past times, but forward and co-shapes the future at the European level with real leadership, then their choice must be Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

I’m not asking them to blindly vote for New Democracy, because it doesn’t make mistakes or because it has all the answers. But I urge them to think about the last few years, put them down and evaluate them with a clear mind. They have all the evidence, experience and experiences of what a SYRIZA government means and what a New Democracy government means. A month from now they will be asked to choose. They choose for them, for the next generation, for the country.

Q: In recent years, Greece has emerged as a hub of stability and reliability, both geopolitically and developmentally. However, Greek-Turkish remains an open case. Do you think that after the elections there will be a window of opportunity and dialogue?

AP: Greece proved, under the most difficult conditions, that it can move forward. Every challenge was also an opportunity to improve, create and shield our future. The Greek-Turkish and the wider geopolitical balance were no exception to this strategy. Greece, today, is defensively armored, diplomatically upgraded, with strong alliances, both regionally and internationally. We are always ready to discuss as long as this discussion is based on rules. We have only one stable basis for dialogue, and that is international law. I hope that the climate that will develop after the elections in Turkey will be such that it will give us the opportunity for an honest dialogue. If Turkey accepts that the Eastern Mediterranean can become a safe and prosperous region it will be to everyone’s benefit. But there is no doubt that the common language of dialogue and communication must be international law and its principles.