Papandreou: "This is a national vote, it is not gambling"

PASOK president George Papandreou called on MPs to exceed their own strength and vote for the program by explaining that "this road is difficult, but the other road is a nightmare." Addressing all the parliamentary wings, he said:

"Do not play dice with with your choice. The positive vote is a national vote", while aiming primarily within PASOK he said that "rejection or escape will not be without consequences. Nobody is entitled to hide. Think of your responsibilities."

Papandreou admitted that the political system over time is the one responsible "for all the special favors we took care of, for every loophole and privilege we implemented, for each union and absurd claim we protected, for every promise, every trade unionist we nurtured, every businessman we favored, for every swindler we did not put in jail, for every lawlessness each of us urged. Right or Left, we all have a responsibility. Our vote today is the decision, the iron will for a different Greece. This is not the parliament of shame, but the parliament of subversion. The temple of Democracy is obliged to make decisions about the future of Greece as a liberator rather than an oppressor."

He asked all members to "carry the weight they were dealt. The program is the only hope. The burden I shouldered was more than I could handle but I did it with personal cost, insults and threats against my life. But I am not afraid just as I was not afraid when I was 14 with a gun to my head to get me to reveal my father's hiding place. Whatever I went through, whatever we went through, it is nothing compared to what the people will go through if we don’t make the necessary decisions."

Moreover, he said that "during the last 2 years, the most critical decisions have been taken on a Sunday," explaining that this is happening because Europe is "afraid of the international markets." He added that the government gives a fight on many fronts "with the profiteers, the conservative Europe and the enemy within."