The BBC posted an extensive article on Greek websites which host complaints about corruption in the public sector. The article attempts to translate the word fakelaki, referring to websites such as edosafakelaki.org.
According to the interpretation: “Treatment is supposed to be free. Fakelaki is the Greek term which means little envelope, but has come to describe a wide range of bribery. It is pronounced “fakk-el-akee”.
“edosafakelaki.org.” is a website created by Christina Tremondi, who gave an interview to BBC reporter Andrew Bomford. Tremondi told her own story explaining the facts which urged her to create the website.
“He’s actually a war veteran and he was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer,” she said. “One night he had incessant bleeding and we had to rush him to the hospital. We were faced with absolute negligence. Nobody gave us the time of day – they were very disrespectful and basically ignored my grandfather.”
“We sort of picked up the cue that they were expecting a bribe, so as soon as my mother reached into her purse and gave them the amount – which I believe now was 300 euros (£240, $395) – he was submitted to the operating room within an hour.”
Tremondi decided to reveal the spread of this phenomenon in Greece. In a month, more than 1,000 cases of bribery were posted on the website. “People are depressed, angry and feel ripped off,” she said.
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