He brought Greece and Albania the arrest of expatriate candidate for mayor of Heimarra Dionysus-Freddy Beleris early Friday morning. In Maximos, the reaction was immediate: the prime minister touched on the issue on Lesvos, where he was touring, saying that Greece was not going to make discounts on the rule of law and the protection of the rights of the Greek ethnic minority. However, where the prime minister was allegedly even stricter was in a telephone conversation he had with her. Ursula von der Leyenwhich was guided by the logic of “immediately stop the Albanian provocations”.

Closing in Crete

For obvious symbolic reasons Nikos Androulakis will deliver his last campaign speech in his hometown of Heraklion in Crete. The ambitions of his president PASOK is a pre-election map of the island, symbolizing the restoration of Pasok on the evening of May 21. That is why at the beginning of the week he will visit the prefecture of Crete where PASOK is weakest: Chania.

Cut off by Tsipras

One seasoned politician on the left pointed out to me that all the leaders of SYRIZA, who have at times shown themselves in a negative way in the public sphere, are “further behind” in this election campaign, campaigning in their districts, and not centrally. in the channels. And he explained to me that “those who disappeared are the work of Tsipras,” since the president of SYRIZA understands that he is harmed by specific individuals.

Karamanlis: “What happened to us?”

Many were surprised to hear the words of Kostas Karamanlis as soon as he saw Manolis Mavrommatis in Zappeio: “Mano, what happened?”. Many were surprised and wondered what the former prime minister had in mind, but the experienced Manolos immediately understood what Karamanlis meant and began to explain to him what his fault was, and Panathinaikos failed to finish first in the championship.

First time

I am staying at the Zappeio event because it was not noted that Kostas Karamanlis in his speech for the first time (!) touched on the topic for which his administration has received the most criticism: the economy. In particular, in a rebuttal, he said that “the failure of the Union to act in a timely and effective manner was clearly manifested during the global financial crisis that arose in 2008-2009”, while the former prime minister continued to criticize the EU harshly. . How… classical Karamanlis, of course, balanced, saying that “it is obvious that our own weaknesses and mistakes are not in doubt,” but the message got through. The first reference to 2008-09 was a preface to a broader statement about this period that is expected and will be made at some point.

Rumeli from Koutsobas

One of the brightest scenes of the TV fight was when the topic of ordering food was brought up during the break. All the political leaders agreed to eat the pizza, with the exception of Koutsouba, who said, “I prefer barbecue because I’m from Rumeli.”

With a make-up artist

One oddity of the debate is that Kyriakos Velopoulos went to the radio station with his personal make-up artist, as he clearly doesn’t trust his image to outsiders. However, at the end of the TV fight, many ranked him among the winners, since the president of Hellenic Solution has been familiar with the terms of the debate for many years, that is, a speech and a short monologue.

Accidentally or planned?

Former New Democracy President Vangelis Meimarakis has been on a three-day tour of Thrace since yesterday, representing New Democracy at the large military parade in Alexandroupolis for Eleftheria. In this context, he will visit the American transport Endurance, and then go to the barrier located in the Fera area, on the Greek-Turkish border. In addition, tomorrow Mr. Meimarakis will give a big campaign speech in Alexandroupolis, and today he is also making a trip to Komotini. However, it is interesting that Meimarakis’ visit to Thrace coincides with the elections in Turkey, which, according to many, did not happen by chance, but were planned.

Extension of tenure

Very interesting information has come into the column, and it concerns the extension of the term of Professor Nikos Alivisatos as a member of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe, an unpaid and independent position, since members are proposed by countries, but are not accountable to any government. The renewal had the “blessings” of Foreign Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, who, as far as I remember, was the one who also suggested that Evangelos Venizelos take the seat of a Greek on the Council of Europe Committee of Wise Men, consisting of seven members. The tenure of the professor began in 2014 – during the reign of Evangelos Venizelos – and was interrupted in 2018 during SYRIZA. Since his replacement did not provide a “gift”, Mr. Alivisatos returned in 2019. Now his term has been extended for another four years.