Greece’s mayors are due to meet on Aug. 30, a day after scheduled talks with Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, to decide whether to take any protest action over further cuts to their budgets.
The mayor of the Athens district of Rendi, Giorgos Ioakeimidis, told SKAI TV that mayors are preparing to resign en masse if they do not receive the 300 million euros ($375.4 million) they have been promised this year. The government is set to cut their budget by 29% as part of demands by international lenders to make $14.16 billion in savings to keep rescue loans coming.
Ioakeimidis is also the Vice President of the Regional Union of Attica Municipalities (PEDA,) which decided to keep local authorities shut on Aug. 29 and 30 to pressure on the government. “Since 2009, we have seen our funding cut by 60% and now they are planning another 29% cut,” said Kallithea Mayor and head of the Confederation of Greek Municipalities (KEDE) Costas Askounis. “How does the Finance Minister expects us to meet our needs?”
(source: Kathimerini, ANSA)
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