The issue of Rodopi was mentioned on SKAI on Monday morning, by New Democracy MP candidate Yiannis Oikonomou, stressing that “it is an issue that we must deal with with national sensitivity, not from a political and partisan point of view. Those of the minority have been decided by the Treaty of Lausanne and should not become the subject of internal political confrontation”.

In the discussion held with Dimitris Tzanakopoulos and Manolis Christodoulakis, Mr. Economou also noted:

“The debate is not about a few thousand votes, there is no question of an election result for a few thousand votes, this must be made clear. Who can believe otherwise? This discussion is taking place because through the manipulations that the SYRIZA leadership chose to do, despite the fact that they were aware, it is sought to change the position of the minority.

The Official Opposition was aware of the moves of the Turkish consulate in favor of specific candidates. However, it was not the only source of information. There are voices from within SYRIZA, who all the time were saying “no Leftist won in Rhodope, he won the Turkish consulate with the influence moves he made”, there were messages saying “Turks vote for Turks”, guided by the false muftis, mentioned to two political executives.

Muslim MPs have been elected in Rodopi, not with New Democracy, but with other parties. Against the line of the consulate, he has been elected as a PASOK-KINAL member of parliament. The issue is not who elects whom. It is to have the minimum required consensus on national issues, to have our ears and eyes open, to see for example who appears on which channels and newspapers in Turkey and what they say and to have the national maturity to make those choices that not to give the right to the Turkish consulate, that is, the Turkish authorities, to interfere in Greek affairs. Not to have “activities”.

Are Greek citizens Muslim in religion or are they a Turkish minority? Didn’t Mr. Philis say that? Is it so difficult for the two particular MPs to come out and say “we are Greek citizens”? That is the issue, not a few thousand votes one way or the other. The questions to SYRIZA are Did EYP go to Thrace yesterday? Haven’t they been there forever? Has there been an update? Did they know that the consulate is campaigning for these two MPs? Because the matter is very critical, they must dispel the suspicions that exist.

Equality and equality in Thrace was established under Konstantinos Mitsotakis. Officials say that they had not been informed by the Ministry of Health, something that is not confirmed. We know that officially the EYP had, a long time ago, informed about the movements of the Turkish consulate. Did they not see the statements on the Turkish channels, nor the messages of the false muftis? We don’t say it, Mrs. Laftsi says it, who talks about very specific things, about the victory of Turkish propaganda and the consulate at the expense not of New Democracy, but of Rhodope.

Mr. Tsipras, his colleagues in his office were informed about the movements of the Turkish consulate and about all these tactics of Turkey in order to influence votes of the minority in favor of specific people.

Mrs. Bakoyannis was the head of the Inter-Party Committee of the Parliament for Thrace, which produced a rich work with consensus, which was also recognized by the local communities in Thrace. Mrs. Bakoyannis in Thrace did not do anything to attempt to change the conditions of the election result in favor of New Democracy, but in favor of the minority.

The minority should not become vulnerable to Turkish propaganda and to Turkey’s attempt to trap it, to instrumentalize it, to use it for its own interests within the country. This is definitely the policy that every responsible party leadership in the country should practice, not to open the back door to the Turks for interference in our internal affairs. Having in front of us an Erdogan who has an intensifying revisionism, neo-Ottomanism, bigotry, we have to be very careful.

If Mr. Tsipras does not understand what he is doing, allowing the Turkish consulate to play this game in Thrace, he does not make for a Prime Minister. If he understands and continues this game for a few thousand votes, he still does not make for a Prime Minister.

Is it possible for SYRIZA to believe that all this talk is being done for a few thousand votes? It is done because it is nationally dangerous, in the naivety or expediency as a party, to open the back door for the Turks to play such games in Greece.