Prime Minister Samaras Offers Electoral Results Statement

The Hellenic Prime Minister's full address is stated below:

"First of all, I want to thank everyone who voted, both today and last Sunday. With its vote, the Greek people sent a message to the government, but also rejected the overturn promoted by (main opposition) SYRIZA.

I know we went through two difficult years. I toured all of Greece, and I heard citizens closely. I know their problems, I know what must change and how, and we shall move fast - the fastest possible. It is fortunate for Greece that despite its huge problems, our government withstood the extreme attacks agains it, while those who tried to attribute the nature of a referendum to the Euroelections failed. They did not manage to create the instability, uncertainty or lack of rule they sought.

The motto "Today we vote, tomorrow they go" fell through. Not only that, the main opposition, who wanted to "overturn" the government, in the turmoil of the crisis, could not even raise its electoral rate from the last national elections - and they wanted national elections?

This is also confirmed, even further, by the fact that in municipalities and regions, SYRIZA - who went to the elections with lists condemning the government - failed almost everywhere in Greece. It gained at most only 2 of the 13 regions, very few of the 52 prefecture capitals, and very few as well of the 66 municipalities in the Attica region.

The government, therefore, remains a guarantor of stability and of the country's smooth path (to the future). And it is going on at even faster rates, to bring the country out of the crisis and the memorandums, with the same and greater determination and the same and even a greater sense of responsibility, and while it corrects the injustices that were perpetrated.

We went through the greatest trial any country has gone through at times of peace. We managed to keep Greece standing. Now we are exiting the crisis with a unified society, with the country facing a steady direction and the economy ready to enter a stage of growth.

Two years ago, on your orders, we averted the worst for Greece. Today we averted the nightmare of returning to the past, to the adventure we lived through and are overcoming today.

Now we will proceed to the last stage of the journey - to exit the crisis completely, so that from now on we may go only higher up and only further ahead."

(Source: http://www.amna.gr/english/articleview.php?id=6096)