Christos Triantopoulos released the famous e-mail of March 9, 2023, in which, according to a report in the newspaper "Estia", the then Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister reveals his coordinating role in the "covering up" of the site of the train accident in Tempi.
In his post on social media, Mr. Triantopoulos reveals that the email concerned "the financing of expenses a) for supporting relatives and b) for the collection and restoration/development of the accident site, that is, for a series of works that were carried out by contractors on behalf of the Region and had to be paid for, as set out by the Region of Thessaly regarding their financing during the - known to the public - meeting that took place on March 6, 2023 at its headquarters in Larissa."
At the same time, in his post he speaks of "a miserable distortion" of the newspaper and emphasizes that "Unfortunately, the opposition parties "discovered" today a timeless obligation of all Governments: To finance, either regular or extraordinary obligations of Local Government."
His post in detail
"The reason I am making today's post - although I am not used to it - is not to respond to the unsubstantiated accusations of the opposition, but to prevent another gigantic lie from taking shape, which will be added to the previous ones that opposition parties and some media outlets are spreading, with the aim of multiplying the anger of society.
This, after all, is the sole goal of the opposition parties: On the national tragedy of Tempi, they either create or reproduce fake news, while often presenting half the truth, distorting data in order to gain petty political benefits. By invoking this email from the opposition, an attempt is made to create new impressions to reinforce the version of the alleged "cover-up".
I am, therefore, releasing to the public the "infamous" email of March 9, 2023, the content of which was presented with a miserable distortion by the newspaper "ESTIA".
As you can initially see in the "subject" of the message, the title was "Coverage of support and restoration costs after the accident in Tempi". The message was addressed to the then Regional Governor of Thessaly, with notification to the others.
The specific email referred to the financing of expenses a) for supporting relatives and b) for the collection and restoration/development of the accident site, that is, for a series of works that were carried out by contractors on behalf of the Region and had to be paid for, as set out by the Region of Thessaly regarding their financing during the – known to the public – meeting that took place on March 6, 2023 at its headquarters in Larissa.
Any well-intentioned person can see for themselves that neither the title nor the informative content of the email message contains the slightest order, nor of course any "coordinating role" on my part.
Unfortunately, the opposition parties "discovered" today a timeless obligation of all Governments: To finance, either regular or extraordinary obligations of Local Government.
Besides, I inform you that I made corresponding communications, which aim to cover the obligations of Municipalities and Regions, on a daily basis and responded to requests or questions from local government organizations either regarding the possibility of their coverage by the relevant financial tools if it was a natural disaster, or regarding informing them about other financial sources when it was not a natural disaster. As is done in the email in question.
The truth cannot be distorted with cheap petty party games and this will be fully revealed during the Preliminary Examination Committee.
PS. Respecting the personal data of the recipient of the email and those who received the notification, I requested and received their consent."
It is recalled that yesterday, government sources spoke of “a deeply misleading publication” which “is part of a broader attempt to distort reality and disorient public opinion”. In fact, they stated that it was a formal update, of purely financial content, which concerned exclusively the coverage of expenses for the support of relatives of the victims and the provision of resources to the Region of Thessaly, in accordance with the obligations of the state, as happens after any accident or disaster, when the central state is called upon to cover the expenses of the Local Government.
At the same time, during yesterday's session of Parliament, a dispute broke out over this specific issue. Specifically, the Minister of State, Akis Skertsos, and the President of SYRIZA, Socrates Famellos, came into conflict, while later the former minister and current MP with the New Left, Euclid Tsakalotos, also participated in the dispute.
This specific issue was also mentioned by PASOK president Nikos Androulakis, who asked the government to make the email public.
"Think about what will happen if you don't present the email in question. Not with us, with the hundreds of thousands who took to the streets and squares. It will be another example of contempt and distrust. You have 24 hours to think about whether it is worth continuing the game of mockery in the face of such a tragedy," Nikos Androulakis said yesterday.
Source: skai.gr
