By a large majority, the Central Committee of SYRIZA voted in favor of the proposal to exclude from the presidential elections o Stefanos Kasselakis.

Today’s decision means that Stefanos Kasselakis’ name will not be included in the submission of nominations until October 24. The question is whether the Congress that will follow on November 7-8 will be able to decide otherwise and declare Stefanos Kasselakis a candidate, as he and his supporters believe.

As for the proposal to delete Stefanos Kasselakis from the party, it was not put to a vote.

According to information, members of the KE who are close to Pavlos Polakis abstained from the vote.

Familiar: Behaviors that question the decisions of the bodies cannot be accepted

The candidate for the presidency of SYRIZA, Sokratis Famellos, spoke about an important decision that ensures the democratic functioning on the day after SYRIZA.

In his statement he also stated that “it was a difficult meeting as there was an attempt to undermine the possibility of the Central Committee meeting. We endorsed to follow the same road map decided in the previous meeting. As for the nomination criteria, we repeated a decision of November 2023. Behaviors that question the decisions of the institutions cannot be accepted. We defend the rules of the democratic functioning of the party.”

Mr. Famellos also said that “another synthetic step was taken” while to the question of whether “Stefanos Kasselakis was excluded”, he answered that “there was no intention to exclude, however, SYRIZA and its executives cannot be excused for their behavior”.

Spirtzis after the SYRIZA Committee: The decision saved the party’s dignity

Satisfied with the developments and the decision to exclude Stefanos Kasselakis from the internal party elections of SYRIZA, Christos Spirtzis appeared after the completion of the Central Committee.

“After an adventure of 11 months, SYRIZA restores camaraderie, a path forward. It’s time to have a heavy political convention. Let’s take the initiative for a government pole. The decision saved the party’s dignity”, emphasized the former SYRIZA minister.

To a question about whether he will be a candidate for the presidency of SYRIZA, he answered: “No”.

In response to a question about whether the Congress can cancel the Central Committee’s decision to exclude Stefanos Kasselakis, he said: “No because the nominations until October 24.”

Everything that happened during the EC meeting

Earlier, the proposal to refer Stefanos Kasselakis to the ethics committee with the question of deletion was submitted by the former financial director of SYRIZA and member of the Central Committee, Thymios Georgopoulos.

The former financial director of SYRIZA and member of the Central Committee, Thymios Georgopoulos, adds three additional reasons out of the 17 cited in his text by Themis Moumoulidis to his own question for the deletion of Stefanos Kasselakis.

Specifically:

-18th Kasselakis extrajudicial – revocation is not possible through X.
-19th The interview with N Hatzinikolaou that only the government did not change.
-20th Today’s attempt by the representatives of Stefanos Kasselakis to undermine the functioning of the supreme governing body.

The rejection of the candidacy of Stefanos Kasselakis was requested in his statement at the meeting of the Central Committee of SYRIZA by Yannis Mouzalas.

As announced, the participants in the JC were a total of 151.

Tension, incidents and police intervention outside the hotel

The tension that prevailed inside the meeting was also transferred outside the room, and even the intervention of the police was needed to calm down the hot-blooded.

Theocharopoulos: The descent should stop here

In his speech, Thanasis Theocharopoulos said:

“Our collective bodies received an out-of-court hearing and a threat with prosecutorial authorities from the former president Stefanos Kasselakis. To say he takes it back but well he did!

At the same time, he has spoken about diversion, hoodlums and entanglement in SYRIZA.

And he does not accept the decisions of the collective bodies saying that he is president despite the censure with which he was deposed.

And I ask if anybody comes today and asks to be a candidate accusing the party of entanglement, diversions, hoodlums, sending extrajudicial charges, threatening the party with prosecutors and then taking it back and saying that it was fine, and signing on as president when he wasn’t, we would accept his nomination. The answer is obviously no.

What also happened today with the supporters of Kasselakis artificially fighting for there to be no quorum and not writing while they are in the venue is called subsidizing the democratic functions of the party. Because they do not have a majority they proceeded to these unthinkable actions. It didn’t work for them, they failed in that too.

In the past days, we did not see any sms about demonstrations outside K.E. even Stefanos Kasselakis himself to invite people to gather outside the Conference hall when it will be held. As if K.E. and conferences are battle arenas. I’m sure they remind everyone of something.

All these practices have nothing to do with the Left and the democratic space. That’s why the descent must stop here.”

At the same time, the resignations started. Iota Poulos submitted to the KE a letter of resignation as a member of the body.

Scenes of infinite beauty with tensions and objections

Earlier, scenes of infinite beauty unfolded as his supporters Stefanou Kasselakis they withdrew from the Central Committee, stating that they do not recognize and do not legitimize the process. Finally, a quorum of 148 members was reached, 2.5 hours after the scheduled time, and the CoE meeting will proceed as normal.

Sources of the SYRIZA-PS majority said:

“A quorum was reached in the KE and the meeting will be held normally, despite the failed attempt by the Kasselakis side to sabotage it by abstaining from it.

There is no greater proof of the attempt to sabotage the process than the fact that members of the KE, who are close to Stefanos Kasselakis, while they were at the meeting, deliberately do not take their card and do not declare their presence.

Unprecedented things, which have nothing to do with respect for the democratic functioning of the party.

Democracy, however, has rules and SYRIZA-PS knows how to protect itself from those who attempt to dismantle and discredit it.”

At the start o Yannis Mantzouranis stated: “The SYRIZA-PS Central Committee is meeting normally despite the desperate efforts of some members to create a quorum problem. A quorum exists and has been established. However, the presence of many members outside the hall, and their refusal to receive an entry card, while at the same time making public statements, shows that they disdain the democratic functioning of the party and obstruct the normal functioning of the highest body which is the Central Committee. SYRIZA-PS must protect itself against any attempt to disregard and undermine democratic processes. And it will protect itself with the decisions taken by the Central Committee and all its other legally elected bodies.”

To a question about whether there will be deletions or exclusions (of Stefanos Kasselakis, of course), Mr. Mantzouranis replied: “I’m hearing it for the first time.”

Tension with Tzakri also during the meeting

Tension inside and outside the meeting room of the Central Committee of SYRIZA prevailed when the majority did not give the floor to Theodora Tzakri who had previously refused to be accredited and get the card of the member of the Central Committee.

Sources of the board of the meeting said: “They tried to break the majority and they did not succeed because SYRIZA is here. Because they do not know and did not learn about SYRIZA, nor do they have any interest in it. Only for Kasselakis’s jacket, which will make him president. Theodora Tzakri asked to take the floor without being registered as a speaker and without having been certified as present because she is among the absent who were trying not to have a majority in the body”.

According to information, during the meeting, Mrs. Gerovasili went up to the podium and asked Mrs. Tzakri to come down, get her card and speak. If he gets it he will be considered present and there will be a larger majority.

On the part of Stefanos Kasselakis, they said that “the Central Committee refused to receive presentations on the list of names requested by Theodora Tzakri”.

Yiannis Mantzouranis – apparently photographing Stefanos Kasselakis – said in his speech that “with frou-frou and perfumes” politics is not done nor “with the backs of the candidates”.

The incident also caused tension outside the hall where the meeting is held by supporters of Stefanos Kasselakis who have come and express their protests strongly while sometimes arguing with people from the other wing.