Marinakis accuses opposition parties of 'instrumentalising a national tragedy'

The government is at odds with the political parties and MPs seeking to instrumentalise and exploit the tragic rail disaster at Tempi, not with the citizens and especially not those who had lost their loved ones or were otherwise impacted by the accident, government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis stressed on Friday, talking to Alpha 989 radio.
He clarified that an announcement on this issue was obviously aimed at the parties and MPs who signed the latest proposal for a Parliamentary preliminary investigation into the Tempi train collision.
"People are on to them, they have understood what has been happening all these months. People want the truth, not instrumentalisation, and the parties and MPs who represent them are deeply exposed," he added. According to Marinakis, the latest proposal "exceeded all bounds" and had no legal foundation, while it represented "a political downhill slide that on the back of so tragic an accident, a national tragedy, such charges should be levelled, to the point of accusing the legally elected prime minister of the country of high treason over a tragic accident."
He appeared confident that ruling New Democracy MPs will support the party's own proposal to indict the former transport minister Kostas Karamanlis for a misdemeanour.
Marinakis also commented on the issue concerning the Monastery of St. Catherine at Sinai, where he emphasised the Egyptian side's explicit statement that there has been no change to the status quo.
"Also, when we refer to status quo....this obviously means that it is referring to the ownership, right. When it speaks of no change in the status quo.... this essentially means that the Egyptian side does not consider that anything has changed," he added.
He said the Greek government will continue to strive for the signature of an agreement that resolves the issue legally and which is obviously a "central agreement with the aim of preserving the character of the existing status quo."

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