The event organized by PASOK in Kalenzi, Achaia, marking 30 years since the death of Andreas Papandreou, concluded with a speech by party leader Nikos Androulakis, held in honor of the party’s founder. “Andreas is the great absence for Greece. And yet he remains uninterruptedly present. Present in the great democratic achievements of our country. Present in the collective memory of the Greek people. Present too in the anxieties of our own generation, which seeks answers in a world full of insecurity, inequality, and uncertainty,” said the PASOK leader. Androulakis also stressed that “it is our duty to make democracy truly dangerous for the establishment again — whether that establishment is economic or media-based, or whether it seeks to undermine the rule of law and democratic institutions. Exactly as Andreas taught us.”
Read more: Memorial event for Andreas Papandreou in Kalenzi, Achaia — PASOK can shape a new strategy for Greece, just like in ’81 (Photos)
Androulakis: “Andreas is still present”
Androulakis went on to say: “This legacy is a source of inspiration for today’s struggles: for a society with less inequality, for a strong public healthcare and education system, for a rule of law that puts an end to the abuse of power, for greater social justice and non-negotiable national dignity. These are the things the Greek people thirst for.”
He added that “Andreas continues to inspire not only those who lived through the radical work of the governments of Change, but also young people who never had the chance to know him,” noting that great leaders do not belong only to their own era — their legacy is timeless, illuminating the needs, aspirations, and struggles of each new generation.
“That is why Andreas is still present. Not as a memory of a glorious past, but as a memory of the future. As a point of reference for all those who continue to believe that politics can give hope and change the lives of ordinary people. These are the ideals we serve today. These are the ideals PASOK fights for alongside every democratic citizen,” he added.
“PASOK was, truly, the first time the Left came to power in this country”
Androulakis distilled the journey of PASOK’s founder into just three words: Analysis, Action, Transcendence — highlighting the meaning he gave them by choosing the difficult path of struggle and Democratic Socialism to unite the democratic Venizelite current, the fighters of the National Resistance, the generation of November 17th, the Athens Polytechnic uprising, and the anti-junta struggle.
“The governments of Change achieved a multi-layered transcendence. Because Change was not simply an electoral victory. It was the entry of great social forces onto the stage of History. Andreas gave real substance to concepts that until then had remained empty words: social justice, popular participation, national dignity,” Androulakis noted, adding emphatically: “The people do not forget: PASOK was, truly, the first time the Left came to power in this country.”
He made special reference to Andreas Papandreou’s contribution to elevating Greece’s international standing as a force for peace and dialogue, through the international initiatives he took — noting that he “did not wait until three in the morning for the phone of History to ring. He was present at its call at every moment. Because he did not follow events” — he shaped them.
“Andreas was not the politician who said ‘yes’ to everything, and for him Greece was non-negotiable. A Greece that stood with confidence on the world stage. A proud Greece that believed foreign policy is a constant struggle for the defense of national interests, peace, and international law” — and that, he said, is the message for today’s generation.
“He had no equal. He was different — something else entirely. He would never have allowed the Greece-Cyprus electrical interconnection cable to run aground at Kasos. He would have sent Turkey’s provocateurs back where they came from. Nor would he have tolerated the Blue Homeland doctrine becoming law. He would have gone to the European Council and slammed his fist on the table to secure a condemnatory resolution against Erdoğan’s government from all of Europe — just as we managed to pass such a resolution through the European Parliament. Andreas, of course, would never have conceived of allowing intelligence services and other deep-state networks to surveil the leadership of the Armed Forces. He would never have sent such a message to any third country seeking to undermine our national security. And above all, no retired Israeli military officer would ever have dared to publicly and brazenly blackmail a leader like Papandreou,” he added.
Androulakis: New Democracy and Kyriakos Mitsotakis are afraid of us
“Today, from Achaia — a land of democratic struggles — we send a clear message to every Greek citizen: the fate of this country is not decline. There is a progressive alternative, with PASOK at its forefront. Because PASOK is the historic, values-driven, and ideological opponent of the Right. New Democracy and Kyriakos Mitsotakis are afraid of us. We will derail their plans for a third term in power.
No matter how many pillars they prop up together with the oligarchy, political change is ready to dawn. The river does not flow backwards. The new Change is a social demand and a national necessity. It is the commitment of the Democratic Camp to a society that needs a future.
To make politics once again a force for hope, social justice, and national dignity. For the new generation seeking more opportunities. For the most vulnerable among us who need support and justice. For the middle classes who are struggling and deserve better days. For a more humane Greece — a Greece for everyone. And I am certain that together, united, we will win,” he concluded.
