‘In order to clarify a case that concerns him, one should under no circumstances hide behind parliamentary immunity. This has been the stance of New Democracy since the moment it became government,’ he stated.
Tsiaras claimed his involvement in the case arose from a single phone call made by a member of his ministerial staff. ‘In fact, we don’t even know who he is, and it is certain that he had no communication with me at all before that particular phone call. He was essentially enquiring on behalf of a farmer who had suffered significant damage after Ianos.’
He explained that the staff member ‘with great courtesy, without any pressure, contacted the head of the regional office of OPEKEPE in Larissa’.
‘The regional manager was told that he had a person in front of him who was worried because an inspection was currently being carried out and he thought he would lose the so-called “greening”. “Greening” is a subsidy provided by the European Commission in cases where a plot of land either adjoins an irrigation canal, a row of trees, or a row of bushes,’ he added.
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