The position of SYRIZA’s Central Committee on cooperating with Alexis Tsipras is beginning to look increasingly uncertain, as Thanasis Theocharopoulos, a senior aide to Sokratis Famellos, stated at yesterday’s meeting of SYRIZA‘s Political Secretariat that “what Tsipras is doing is understandable and deserves respect. ELAS does not negotiate, so SYRIZA must prepare for all eventualities and function as a party. We offer critical support to ELAS, but that means both support and criticism.”
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SYRIZA: Tsipras holds firm on “no,” internal criticism mounts against Famellos
This position opens up an entirely different conversation regarding cooperation with Alexis Tsipras’s party, given that until now there was a general impression that everyone around Sokratis Famellos agreed with the SYRIZA leader’s proposal. Theocharopoulos made these remarks shortly before Tsipras once again reiterated his position that he does not cooperate with parties — only with individuals. Nevertheless, Sokratis Famellos defended the Central Committee’s decision to pursue cooperation with ELAS, stating: “It is unacceptable that we democratically decide on something, and then from day one some of our officials pretend they didn’t understand, or present their own minority views as the party’s official decision. This runs counter to our democratic principles, the will of our members, and our collective decision. Continuously calling for meetings to re-discuss what we have already decided is an unprecedented maneuver that contradicts the will of SYRIZA’s members,” Famellos said pointedly.
Through this stance, the SYRIZA leader made clear his determination to implement the party’s decision. However, yesterday’s meeting produced no answer as to whether SYRIZA will run in the elections independently. As of yesterday evening, the document bearing the 70 signatures required to convene an extraordinary session of the Central Committee — a move demanded by the party’s minority faction — had not yet been formally submitted. During the meeting, minority members reportedly accused Famellos of having taken the party from 10% support down to 1%. Several senior figures once again expressed frustration at the absence of a clearly articulated roadmap from Famellos for the party’s next steps.
Nikos Pappas emphasized: “We heard nothing about a roadmap. There was no explanation for the party’s polling figures. The attitude that ‘we are on the right track’ is deeply discouraging. What is needed is a coordinated course of action, not personal negotiations.” Pavlos Polakis, who left the meeting early for professional reasons, said: “I told party leader Sokratis Famellos very clearly — speak to Alexis Tsipras officially and get him to confirm whether he will or will not cooperate. Because if that doesn’t happen, we cannot keep prolonging this situation of self-degradation, humiliation, and disintegration.” The MP from Chania claimed he had already gathered the 70 signatures required to reconvene the Central Committee, meaning that if formally submitted within 15 days, the party’s top governing body would be forced to meet again. Rena Dourou, for her part, noted: “Separate ballots do not necessarily mean opposing ballots. Two parties can run in an election without running against each other. We are talking about a stance that is entirely manageable in terms of public communication.” SYRIZA’s foreign affairs spokesperson added: “The longer we delay, the more we feed internal divisions and limit our ability to mount a credible electoral presence. Let us not forget that we are already in an election campaign. Mitsotakis and Androulakis are already operating in full campaign mode — and so is ELAS, as we’ve seen from the three proposals put forward and the appointment of officials with an eye on the electoral calendar.”
