Venizelos: "If we don't assume our responsibility nothing will be left standing"

“Do you think that if we proceed with bankruptcy we are off on a school trip? In that case the second Memorandum’s measures will seem like an oasis of joy! We will be begging for food, medicines, oil and Greece will be on the brink of civil war”!

With these statements, Evangelos Venizelos presented the dimensions of the issue to his respondents. In order to help them answer, he posed a few more questions: Sacrifices or complete sacrifice? Dependence or total humiliation? Wage cuts or nothingness? In this context, he urged MPs to support the new contract and not retreat when faced with the front of irresponsibility.

“To the opportunists who want to return to the drachma and some from the Communist party”, he noted, “those who pretend to be innocent and want to take advantage of the situation politically”, he clarified his personal stance:

- I did not lead PASOK in 2009 and I did not participate in the core of the government. I did not negotiate the 1st Memorandum but I spoke about the IMF, and I insisted during Memorandum 1 that everybody should assume their responsibility and not hide
- I took on a national responsibility in June. Whenever they needed it, I supported Loverdos and Papaconstantinou.
- In recent months Papandreou and I battled not to lose our dignity.