The General Assembly of the Regional Union of Attica Municipalities was attended by Harry Doukas. The mayor of Athens, in his speech, referred to the modern challenges faced by the institution of Local Self-Government.

“We are going through a critical period, in the next five years, as the changes that have taken place affect all the cities and their inhabitants”, he said, among other things, and continued: “The mayors in the municipalities that touch the peri-urban forests of Attica, every summer, in recent years, live the nightmare of fires. The mayors in the southern and western regions are wondering with horror what a Daniel will mean in Attica. All the mayors are anxious, measuring their endurance in the neighborhoods, during periods of heat. We are also called upon to deal with the ticking time bomb of waste management, as the sudden and retroactive payment of the burial fee threatens to derail the budgets of all municipalities. There are also the big problems of security, social inequalities, housing, everyday life. The question is whether the institution of Self-Government will be able to adapt to the new data and whether we will acquire the modern tools required to fulfill our role”.

He also referred to the weakening of the municipalities by the central administration, pointing out: “None of us dreams of our path in Self-Government, begging for funds in the corridors of ministries. No one wants to stand in front of the citizens unable to provide solutions. And of course we cannot proceed with perceptions of submission to the centralized authority. We must demand the changes needed to meet our mission. We all know that bold reforms are needed, that a new road map for the institution is needed. And to achieve this we need a new, strong self-governing movement, free from party unilateralism, which will cover a wide range of opinions and break through barriers. And united, it will claim the solutions that are required”.