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Cyprus Mail
Feb 21 2010
Cyprus will suffer the same humiliation as Greece
By Loucas Charalambous
Published on February 21, 2010 +-Text size
GREECE'S precarious public finances, which have put the country on the
verge of bankruptcy, featured prominently in the world's media over
the last week.
The decision to put the country under strict supervision was not just
a loss of part of her national sovereignty, as Prime Minister George
Papandreou maintained. It was an international humiliation, worse than
the one inflicted on the country 60 years ago when it was placed under
international economic monitoring.
Then, at least, bankruptcy was the result of Greece's involvement in
six catastrophic wars ` including a civil war ` within a period of 50
years. However, Greece has not been involved in any war in the last 50
years. How sad that the country had to suffer this humiliation to make
the world news.
>From the look of it, our turn should be coming soon. The warning signs
have already started flashing. Former finance minister Michalis
Sarris, recently said: `If things are left as they are, in the form
and dimensions they have taken, there is a real danger that our
deficit will reach Greece's levels.'
Economist Bambos Papageorgiou suggested the immediate adoption of
measures for reducing public spending. He suggested the gradual
reduction of public sector wages as well as civil servants
contributing to their own pension funds. His warning was starker: `If
we do not take drastic measures ourselves, by March or April we would
be put under supervision and have these imposed on us. If we want to
protect our pride, we should take the measures now.'
But what pride was he talking about? Who cares about our pride in this
crazy country? Not our government , who in these conditions decides to
waste ?¬100 million purchasing Russian tanks ` only God knows for what
reason. Is this government concerned about defending our national
pride when it has no qualms about increasing the public debt by close
to one billion euros linking Paphos to a coastal village with a
super-highway of US standards, because a few populist Paphite deputies
have been demanding it?
Were Yiannakis Omirou and Marios Garoyian concerned about our
`national pride' when, in co-operation with President Christofias,
they agreed to waste ?¬35 million on bankrupt charter airline
Eurocypria? I quite enjoyed the justification given by Garoyian for
wasting the taxpayer's money on Eurocypria. DIKO was in favour of the
?¬35m bail-out for two reasons: it would ensure that the breadwinners
of 300 families would not lose their jobs and the company would bring
to 300,000 tourists to Cyprus.
In other words, the taxes paid by citizens on annual salaries of
?¬30,000 or ?¬40,000 should be used to finance the salaries of ?¬100,000
and ?¬120,000 paid to the pampered Eurocypria employees. By the same
logic, the state should hire all the unemployed so that all families
have their breadwinners earning a wage.
As for the 300,000 tourists, are they seriously going to have trouble
finding a plane to bring them to Cyprus once Eurocypria is closed?
Does Garoyian think he is addressing morons or is he expounding
Armenian economic theory?
With such bright brains in charge of the country, neither will our
pride be saved nor will we be spared the humiliation currently being
suffered by Greece.
Feb 21 2010
Cyprus will suffer the same humiliation as Greece
By Loucas Charalambous
Published on February 21, 2010 +-Text size
GREECE'S precarious public finances, which have put the country on the
verge of bankruptcy, featured prominently in the world's media over
the last week.
The decision to put the country under strict supervision was not just
a loss of part of her national sovereignty, as Prime Minister George
Papandreou maintained. It was an international humiliation, worse than
the one inflicted on the country 60 years ago when it was placed under
international economic monitoring.
Then, at least, bankruptcy was the result of Greece's involvement in
six catastrophic wars ` including a civil war ` within a period of 50
years. However, Greece has not been involved in any war in the last 50
years. How sad that the country had to suffer this humiliation to make
the world news.
>From the look of it, our turn should be coming soon. The warning signs
have already started flashing. Former finance minister Michalis
Sarris, recently said: `If things are left as they are, in the form
and dimensions they have taken, there is a real danger that our
deficit will reach Greece's levels.'
Economist Bambos Papageorgiou suggested the immediate adoption of
measures for reducing public spending. He suggested the gradual
reduction of public sector wages as well as civil servants
contributing to their own pension funds. His warning was starker: `If
we do not take drastic measures ourselves, by March or April we would
be put under supervision and have these imposed on us. If we want to
protect our pride, we should take the measures now.'
But what pride was he talking about? Who cares about our pride in this
crazy country? Not our government , who in these conditions decides to
waste ?¬100 million purchasing Russian tanks ` only God knows for what
reason. Is this government concerned about defending our national
pride when it has no qualms about increasing the public debt by close
to one billion euros linking Paphos to a coastal village with a
super-highway of US standards, because a few populist Paphite deputies
have been demanding it?
Were Yiannakis Omirou and Marios Garoyian concerned about our
`national pride' when, in co-operation with President Christofias,
they agreed to waste ?¬35 million on bankrupt charter airline
Eurocypria? I quite enjoyed the justification given by Garoyian for
wasting the taxpayer's money on Eurocypria. DIKO was in favour of the
?¬35m bail-out for two reasons: it would ensure that the breadwinners
of 300 families would not lose their jobs and the company would bring
to 300,000 tourists to Cyprus.
In other words, the taxes paid by citizens on annual salaries of
?¬30,000 or ?¬40,000 should be used to finance the salaries of ?¬100,000
and ?¬120,000 paid to the pampered Eurocypria employees. By the same
logic, the state should hire all the unemployed so that all families
have their breadwinners earning a wage.
As for the 300,000 tourists, are they seriously going to have trouble
finding a plane to bring them to Cyprus once Eurocypria is closed?
Does Garoyian think he is addressing morons or is he expounding
Armenian economic theory?
With such bright brains in charge of the country, neither will our
pride be saved nor will we be spared the humiliation currently being
suffered by Greece.