The "hardliners" of the blockades show no inclination to back down, remaining committed to escalating the protests with the sole concession of opening the roads for New Year's Eve partygoers in an effort to calm the reactions caused yesterday, Sunday, by drivers who took up to 12 hours to travel from Thessaloniki to Athens.
They are even trying to show that there is no rift in the ranks of the farmers, with Rizos Maroudas from the Nice bloc claiming that "there are 11 blocs that say they are continuing with the Panhellenic committee."
Rizos Maroudas from the Nice blockade
He also accused his colleagues who in the previous 24 hours had seemed more conciliatory in favor of a meeting with the government of "objectively throwing grist to the government's mill, they have not said where they separate their positions and where they disagree with the demands. No one can play with the survival of farmers, livestock farmers, fishermen, and beekeepers."
At the same time, the Minister of Rural Development, Costas Tsiaras, in his statements this morning said that "the ball of dialogue is in the hands of the farmers," adding meaningfully that "if 18 decided what they decided, it cannot be the subject of pressure and ridicule. Democracy has conditions and these must be respected by everyone. Some cannot invoke it for their demands and at the same time destroy it with their behavior."
Bypasses are also closed
At 14:00 PM, the farmers of Bralos will also close the side road of PATHE for two hours, noting that despite the escalation of the protests, they will continue to show social responsibility and facilitate traffic in view of the departure and return of New Year's holiday goers.
At 16:00, their colleagues at the Nice blockade will carry out a similar movement by blocking the bypass roads.
In Achaia, since Saturday afternoon, the Patras Perimeter Road, which had been opened to facilitate Christmas excursionists, has been closed again and traffic is now being diverted through the city.
In Aitoloakarnania, today farmers will again close the Ionian Highway (12:00 pm) at the Angelokastro toll booth, where they had allocated two lanes of traffic in each direction. More than 300 tractors are lined up at the point.
In Ilia, from around 8:00 last night, strong forces of farmers were at the Pyrgos junction, blocking both the Patras-Pyrgos National Road and Olympia Odos for about two hours, as they had announced. A blockade was also set up in Lechaina, with the road also closed on the Patras-Pyrgos route, creating significant traffic delays.
The Evzones customs office will be closed to all vehicles in both directions today, from 12:00 to 16:00 and from 18:00 to 22:00, through which only emergencies will pass (e.g. patients with a doctor's note, vehicles with small children, etc.).
The blockade at the Promachona customs office is being reinforced today with the arrival of tractors from the municipalities of Iraklia and Sidirokastro. The gathered farmers will decide on the further course of their mobilizations during their general assembly, at two in the afternoon.
The transit station in the Drama countryside remains closed to trucks for the third consecutive day, with those gathered - who meet every day at 7:00 PM - declaring their intention to continue the blockade until Tuesday, when the barriers will be opened to facilitate New Year's excursionists.
In Chalkidona, farmers will close the highway junction there from two in the afternoon until five in the afternoon, for all vehicles, excluding city buses and emergencies.
At the same time, the "hardliners" of the blocs are planning a new escalation for after the New Year with a nationwide meeting that will likely take place next Saturday, January 3.
Tsiaras: What did he say about rural electricity, payments and the VAT on agricultural oil?
The ball of the dialogue is in the hands of the farmers, stated the Minister of Rural Development, Costas Tsiaras, on Monday morning, who also noted that "I cannot understand how these steps by the government cannot be seen by a part of the farmers as an opportunity to solve the long-standing problems in the agricultural sector."
Specifically, regarding rural electricity, he told SKAI that "we are extending the low price and lowering it even further," while regarding rural oil, he emphasized that "farmers are asking that the excise tax not be withheld from the moment they are supplied at the pump, and we are satisfying this." Mr. Tsiara also stated that a redefinition of oil consumption must be made and that there is no ceiling for the refund of the excise tax.
"The government has taken brave steps to resolve the problem," the Minister of Rural Development said, recalling that "the Prime Minister himself made himself available for dialogue." At the same time, he said that "if the 18 blocs made a decision for dialogue, they should not be subject to pressure and ridicule."
Regarding payments, he stated that there was a delay due to the effort to reorganize OPEKEPE and the audits, and that the main issue is the cleansing of OPEKEPE, adding that almost all payments have been made.
"We are open to seeing which other products need support," Mr. Tsiaras also noted, who, referring to sheep pox, stated that "the government decided and gave generous compensation for the animals killed" and that the issue of the vaccine is a decision of the scientific community. "There is no country in the EU that has made the vaccine for smallpox," Mr. Tsiaras emphasized.
Finally, when asked if he would go to the blockades himself, the Minister of Rural Development replied that he was willing to do so "as long as there is the same willingness on the other side."
Source: protothema.gr
