SYRIZA: The behind-the-scenes of Polakis’s invitation to the candidate leaders

The atmosphere within SYRIZA Progressive Alliance grows heavier day by day, as following Stefanos Kasselakis‘s legal notice to the members of the Political Secretariat and the Central Committee, Pavlos Polakis’s initiative to convene all presidential candidates yesterday failed along the way, with the gap between the “Kasselakis faction” and the majority widening even further.

This is because, with the legal notice active against the members of the guiding bodies, Nikolaos Farandouris and Apostolos Gletsos refused to attend at Koumoundourou, while three conditions were set by Socratis Famellos’s side in order for him to participate in the meeting, notably reminding that sending a legal notice to the members of the Political Secretariat and the Central Committee constitutes an “inconceivable and unacceptable action.” As a result, at 12:30 PM today, Pavlos Polakis, as the organizer of the meeting, is expected to be present, along with, reportedly, the former president, Stefanos Kasselakis, while the party’s natural leadership (Rania Svigkou and Nikos Pappas) will not participate due to lack of quorum.

Polakis’s “Backdoor”

However, Pavlos Polakis’s initiative to call for the meeting, resulting in the invitation to Stefanos Kasselakis to Koumoundourou, has sparked a new round of introspection within SYRIZA PS, given that the former president of the party has not withdrawn the legal notice against the party organs. “How many mistakes does Polakis need to make?” party members commented yesterday, adding pointedly that Mr. Polakis, although he claims after announcing his candidacy that he made a mistake last year by promoting and supporting Stefanos Kasselakis for President of SYRIZA – PS, is proving in recent hours that he ultimately does not learn from his mistakes. “The question is: is he a rabbit or a lifeline for Kasselakis?” the same members intensely wondered, referring to a “backdoor,” while several within SYRIZA PS attributed Mr. Polakis’s move to anxiety about the next day and to… Crete.

Given that the candidate for President of SYRIZA PS will have to face Kasselakis’s cousin in the Chania region, strengthening his position in the Attica region after his candidacy could keep him in a central role in case Stefanos Kasselakis is re-elected, as the latter will begin tomorrow a “march to the people,” which means a week-long pre-election campaign across the country.

A Party Within a Party

Yesterday, however, the gathering of Mr. Kasselakis’s supporters in Nea Smyrni rekindled scenarios suggesting that the ousted president of SYRIZA PS is preparing an organizational core for all possibilities, with his internal party opponents talking about a “rehearsal for the Kasselakis party” in Nea Smyrni. This impression was reinforced by the fact that Mr. Kasselakis was accompanied by MPs and officials beyond the boundaries of the first electoral district of Athens, such as: the secretary of the parliamentary group Theodora Tzakri, parliamentary representative Giorgos Gavrilas, the second parliamentary representative Yiannis Sarakiotis, the coordinator of EPEKE Giota Pouli, the deputy coordinator of EPEKE Rallia Christidou, the shadow minister of culture Kyriaki Malama, the shadow minister of justice Alexandros Avlonitis, and the director of the parliamentary group, Thanos Moraitis. Additionally, the gathering was attended by candidate MEPs Melpo Lekatsa, Evangelos Antonaros, and Nasos Papargyropoulos, members of the Central Committee of SYRIZA, as well as party officials.

Moreover, given that Mr. Kasselakis is reportedly gathering about 11 MPs around him, reports suggested that they were discussing every possibility in a “closed” meeting following the rapid developments regarding the ousting, at a time when Mr. Kasselakis has been put on the path to expulsion by the majority, following the sending of the legal notice against the guiding bodies.

Message from the Ethics Committee

The Ethics Committee, which met yesterday, has already sent a message to the former president’s side, calling on him to withdraw the legal notice and also to attend a meeting, following a vote that ended with 11 votes in favor and 2 against.

It was also decided with 8 votes in favor and 6 against not to discuss yesterday the request of Themios Moumoulidis for the referral of Stefanos Kasselakis for expulsion but rather to archive it until further notice, while the Political Secretariat of SYRIZA Progressive Alliance meets tomorrow to prepare the Central Committee’s proposal in view of Saturday.

Negotiations for the Central Committee

At the same time, the “neutral” members are key to the balances of the Central Committee, given that the “87” of the new majority have reached 163 votes on the motion of censure, but it remains unknown what actions the members who do not belong organically to the factions of the “Kasselakis faction” and the “Tsipras guard” will take. The so-called “neutrals” are estimated to be over 100, with both sides attempting to gauge the inclinations of these members in view of the meeting of the Central Committee, which may be called to address the potential expulsion of Mr. Kasselakis from the succession race, if not his definitive expulsion from the party.