Haris Doukas is in a scrappy mood – as are all the factions in PASOK that oppose him. His pose as a leading voice in the party is not justified by his performance in internal voting procedures, according to some PASOK cadres who believe he is adding to the party’s woes. Officials in other center-left parties agree that he is simply amplifying the impasse at which his party finds itself, and doing so publicly.
The mayor of Athens claims that he is doing nothing more than staying true to the decisions reached at the opposition party’s congress, whose overarching objective is a government defeat. He believes he will ultimately be vindicated, declares his fealty to PASOK and asks his colleagues: Does dialogue ultimately come under attack when someone genuinely cares about a political movement and is willing to fight for it?
Doukas further fueled the discontent – already fired up by public opinion polls – last week when he spoke of the need to work with the new party launched by former leftist prime minister Alexis Tsipras after the next general election. Many party officials, publicly or behind the scenes, expressed frustration over Doukas’ latest departure from the party line, with some even arguing that he was deliberately provoking the leadership and effectively inviting expulsion. Several were also irritated by the party leadership’s decision to overlook the issue and refrain from imposing any disciplinary measures.
