PASOK Needs

a Rational Leader, Not a Populist

PASOK, without self-criticism for the mistakes that were made, cannot have a future. That is why the negative record of PASOK is still being revisited today, so that we may learn from it.

Who can forget the slogan "EEC and NATO are the same syndicate"? Who forgets the unjustified anti-Americanism that damaged national interests? Of course, Andreas remained in the EEC and NATO, but even today some people in PASOK cannot forget those slogans.

Who can forget the deception over the American bases? The bases left, while they also stayed. And the most tragicomic moment of all: when the Americans were dismantling the Nea Makri base, the workers went on strike to keep it!

Who can forget the PASOK unionists who led to the bankruptcy and closure of the Skaramangas shipyards? The chief unionist who ran the shipyards forbade repairs on ships of the 6th U.S. Fleet, in order to serve Andreas' short-lived anti-American slogans.

How many billions of euros did the union thugship of the shipyards cost the Greek people? Did they not know that Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world and needs shipyards?

There were also other mistakes: PASOK established student participation in university administration at percentages unseen anywhere else in the world, and unionized students became the thugs of the universities. It also abolished evaluation in education, socialized bankrupt enterprises, cultivated clientelism and party rule, and so on.

PASOK needs to distinguish between the roles of politician and unionist. In democracies - not in communist regimes - the role of the politician is different from that of the unionist. During the PASOK era, unionists became busybodies and wanted to participate in governing the country. Should we remind them that unionists reacted savagely to key PASOK reforms, such as Arsenis' education reform and Giannitsis' insurance and pension reform?

What will the new PASOK leader do about unionism? For example, will he tolerate unionists who oppose reforms?

Have those who dream of the old PASOK realized that the above negative phenomena still haunt Greece? Have they realized that if the name "PASOK" rallies some die-hard PASOK supporters, it drives away some centrist and younger voters?

PASOK is a center-left party, but it carries baggage from the past. New ideas and new practices are needed for it to dominate the center-left space. The future belongs to social democracy.

Syriza is also trying to dominate the center-left space, but it fails, because it is captive to the ideologies and mechanisms of the old Syriza, the 3-4 percent Syriza. Captive to propaganda and populism.

It is doubtful whether old-style candidates can dominate the center-left space. In other words, if the candidates are "children" of the party machine, if they made careers in the party through student factions, if they have never worked in their lives, and so on, then they are probably incapable of becoming leaders.

What is needed is a leader with a new mentality. Someone with broad knowledge, with a full analytical and synthetic view of Greek society and the international scene. A politician with many qualifications, who is also an effective leader. A politician of the center, of moderation, and of consensus - not a populist.

Of course, Giorgakis was a populist too. For example, while he had been informed by the Governor of the Bank of Greece that the country was heading toward bankruptcy, he ran an election campaign saying, "There is money." And then he led us into bankruptcy. "Enough already with the Papandreous. It is shameful" (Christos Yannaras).

If PASOK wants to become government, it needs a leader of the center and consensus. It needs a rational leader, not a populist. And let us not forget that societies have suffered from populist leaders. So stay away from populists.

Paul Marantos

marantosp@gmail.com