Konstantopoulou meets PM Tsipras, stresses shared commitment to 'defending the people'

Gazzetta team 23 Ιουλίου 2015 - 17:20

In statements after a two-hour meeting with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Thursday, Parliament President Zoi Konstantopoulou said that their relations remained cordial, despite her refusal to back the draft bills that the government had brought to Parliament in order to launch negotiations on a third bailout for Greece.

"With the prime minister we are linked by ties of comradeship, sincerity and a common willingness, commitment and desire to defend the rights of our people, the prospects of this country and the cohesion of the left and of SYRIZA that some would like to see shredded," she noted.

Konstantopoulou said they had a sincere and in-depth discussion with Tsipras about the events of the past few days and the "initiatives that must be taken by the Parliament and institutional representations in relation to the protection of the things that are the non-negotiable rights of our people and in relation to defending democracy, which is being sorely tested in Europe."

The Parliament president said that she had "unequivocally stressed" the "common commitment of the prime minister and myself to serving the interests of the people, the people's sovereignty and the result of the people's vote."

"At such times when institutional representations and political positions are being tested, it is important that the representatives of precisely these institutions can talk with sincerity and directness, even if they had different opinions or approaches, to talk openly, reach an understanding and come up with solutions," she added.

According to sources within the prime minister's office, Tsipras had expressed concern over the institutional "dissonance" created by her decision to differentiate herself from the collective policy direction of the government and the Parliamentary majority that supports her.

They said that the prime minister carefully listened to her views and that the meeting was held in a cordial and sincere atmosphere.

The meeting was requested by Konstantopoulou so that she might discuss her objections to the procedure followed for the second package of prior actions passed by Parliament in the early hours of Thursday morning, which she claimed flouted the Constitution, and a letter that she sent to Tsipras to request that he convey these concerns to his European counterparts.