Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis returned to the domestic political scene following a week of intensive international engagements at the UN General Assembly in New York. His return is overshadowed by a double-barreled crisis that threatens to impact the government’s standing: the ongoing fallout from the Tempi rail tragedy and a burgeoning scandal over the OPEKEPE agricultural payments organization.
The international leg of his trip was already marked by tension after the high-profile, pre-scheduled meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan was canceled, further straining Greek-Turkish relations.
Greece’s Tempi tragedy: judicial decisions and political exploitation
The government is currently navigating a sensitive, high-profile challenge related to the Tempi accident, brought to the forefront by Panos Ruci’s hunger strike in Syntagma Square. Ruci is demanding the exhumation of his late son for identity confirmation and independent toxicological analysis.
Demonstrations were held on Sunday across Greece in support of Ruci, who has been on a fifteen-day hunger strike in front of the Parliament, demanding the exhumation of his son Dennis to clarify the cause of death.
On Friday, judicial authorities approved Dennis’ exhumation but only for identification purposes. Ruci rejected the limited scope of the decision. “I accept none of this,” he said. “They continue to mock us. I am here, and I continue the struggle to the end.”
A petition signed by 78 Tempe victims’ relatives asked that Dennis Ruci’s body also undergo toxicological and histological tests. Authorities granted permission only for identification purposes.
Three other families have also petitioned for exhumations of their children lost in the 2023 crash, one of Greece’s deadliest rail accidents. Mitsotakis is walking a fine line: offering empathy for the grieving father while upholding the institutional independence of the judiciary.
In his established Sunday social media post, Mitsotakis stressed the need for the state to “stand sensitively next to people who are in pain.” However, he made it clear that the government respects the judiciary’s decisions and warned against actions that could delay the trial, noting that “perpetual delays could even lead to statutes of limitations for offenses.”
The prevailing view among government officials is that opposition parties are seeking to exploit relatives’ pain for political gain so as to prevent the start of the judicial proceedings.
Mitsotakis faces a crisis over the farm scandal investigation
The second front Mitsotakis faces concerns the investigation into the OPEKEPE organization (responsible for EU agricultural subsidies). The government anticipates the opposition will significantly escalate its efforts and demand the summoning of relevant government officials to an investigative committee.
The issue is fueling public suspicion regarding accountability, as reflected in recent opinion polls. While the controversy is a major topic among New Democracy (ND) MPs who report direct pressure from their constituents, the government insists there is no evidence to substantiate the opposition’s allegations.
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