The relocation of Akrini is a law of the State which is refused to be implemented by two successive governments., the current of ND and the previous of SYRIZANEL.
In order to avoid misunderstandings, a brief list of the main stations in this long-suffering case follows.
THE FACTS
23.6. 2007 The relocation is adopted for the first time politically by the President of PASOK George Papandreou, when touring the area he met at the facilities of ASEPOP in Velvento with a delegation of Akrini.
4.10. 2009 PASOK wins the elections and 3 government MPs (Athanasiadis, Shoot, Koukoulopoulos) We are launching a coordinated effort to implement the Prime Minister's commitment. The relocation from the beginning had obstacles and difficulties because there was no lignite in the subsoil of Akrini and therefore it had to be legislated in such a way as to satisfy a fair request without dragging out dissimilar cases.. The extraordinary circumstances that followed in the country with the debt crisis and the first memorandum made our effort unbearably difficult, which nevertheless was completed..
31.3. 2011 The relocation of Akrini and Anargyroi becomes a law of the State with a ten-year horizon of completion and the cost is shared equally between the State and PPC (article 28 N. 3937/2011).
28.9. 2011 The Committee provided for in the above article shall be established by PPC 28.
9.12.2011 The first Meeting of the Commission is held, which after hard work, 20 and more months, completes the relocation plan which is accepted in its basic principles by all those involved.
16.9. 2013 The plan is submitted to the Management of PPC which has the obligation by law to process it in the form of PD. There are specific gaps and problems that need to be addressed by law.
- 7. 2014 In the law 4273 for Small PPC the above essential problems are solved with the articles 13 (mainly) and 15.
- 9. 2014 PPC incorporates the new regulations and submits the PD plan to YPEKA. The elaboration by the legal services of the Ministry raises the issue of possible separation of the two settlements with different provisions in the division of expenses., since Anargyroi is located in the area where the investor of Mikri PPC was to be located.
29.12.2014 The Parliament is dissolved after the 3rd barren vote of the PTD election.
- 1. 2015 The elections highlight a SYRIZA-ANEL government and 4 government MPs in the Kozani PE.
- 1. 2015 At the delivery-receipt of the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure, the competent minister Mr. Lafazanis is informed about the pending relocations that no longer existed., given Tsipras' commitment to abolish the Small PPC. Nevertheless, the PD is not signed by him or by Mr. Skourletis' successor without the slightest justification.
- 9. 2015 The elections re-elect a SYRIZA-ANEL government with 4 government MPs in the Kozani PE, all of SYRIZA. For about two years there is no memorable event regarding the relocation other than the popular assemblies in Akrini.
10.6.2017 The big landslide in the Amyntaio Mine forces the government to proceed with the forced expropriation of the settlement of Anargyroi 4 months later.
- 11. 2017 The law is published 4495 where together with the expropriation of the Anargyros the government legislates again(!) the obligation of PPC to submit a draft PD for the relocation of Akrini until 30.4.18. This PD has been ignored ever since without any official explanation.
- 7. 2019 The elections show a SW government with 4 government MPs in the Kozani EP and to date there is no development in this case. There is a lot of information and rumors about Akrini, but to date no official information has been given to the residents about the fate of the relocation.
THE CONCLUSIONS
- The provocative ignorance of the residents of Akrini by the ND government is a continuation of their unprecedented mockery by the SYRIZA-ANEL government.
- This relocation was from the beginning a difficult affair that required and still requires strong political will in order to complete it.. In other words, it is primarily a political issue.
- The responsibilities of government MPs, first of SYRIZA and now of ND, are huge as MPs are, before anything else, our political representatives in the decision-making centers.
- The local and regional government is involved in the implementation of the project as it has successfully done between 2011-13 in the preparation of the relocation plan. At the heart of the matter, its only contribution is to exert pressure by aiding MPs' efforts..
- The 10-year term set by law 3937/2011 is not exclusive, but indicative and therefore binds the administration, especially since the regulation was made for reasons of public interest. Even if it was exclusive, its extension is reasonable for reasons of force majeure due to the pandemic. This is done in Parliament of course and not in the municipal and / or regional council.
EPILOGUE
The case of Akrini concerns us all because it marks the smooth functioning of the institutions and finally the quality of our democracy and in addition for another serious reason. Violent de-ligation, among other things, can not mean the escape of the state from its legal obligations in the region. From the district heating that is in danger of being left in the air to the restoration of lands that is evolving into a photovoltaic installation, the list is long and Akrini is the tip of the iceberg.
Challenges cannot go unanswered because they are first and foremost about our dignity and our faith in democratic institutions..
PASOK-Movement for Change in the coming days submits a question to Parliament for Akrini and we clearly state that we stand by its people as we do from the beginning because we are simply not all the same.
