Opposition reaction to prospect of new top judicial officials days before snap election

May 29, 2019
Written by E.Tsiliopoulos

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Opposition reaction to prospect of new top judicial officials days before snap election

The prospect of the now "lame duck" Tsipras government nominating and then ratifying - via its slim Parliament majority - candidates for the country's top judicial posts ignited a firestorm of criticism early this week, particularly after a government spokesman on Tuesday said a snap election will take place on July 7.

The decision to hold the early election on the first Sunday of July, instead of June 30, which was the first date on the calendar for a snap election, generated widespread speculation over the outgoing government's legislative initiatives before the current Parliament plenum dissolves.

For the record, the government spokesman said nationwide college entrance exams were the reason for moving back, by a week, the date of early elections. The response, by political opponents, was that only a handful of special exams, in music and design, for instance, are scheduled for the last week of June.

"For reasons of basic political and moral legitimacy, it's inconceivable for any such decisions to be taken, ones that will (legally) bind the country for the next few years," was the reaction by main opposition New Democracy (ND) party.

ND directly warned the Tsipras government not to nominate and bring up for ratification a handful of top judicial officials whose tenure ends on June 30, such as the president of the supreme court and the head of the supreme court prosecutor's office.

In reaction to the ND statement, government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos denied that the current government, with a month or so remaining under its mandate, wants to manipulate the justice system's leadership.

He also referred to an "insult against the institutions".

"New Democracy, once again, insulted the institutions, and is attempting to manipulate the justice system. The country has a constitution, a government legal system that determines responsibilities. Some people want the institutions to remain without leadership ahead of elections," Tzanakopoulos said.

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