The SYRIZA Central Committee session is currently underway, tasked with electing a new secretary, forming an electoral committee, and charting the party’s roadmap ahead of the next elections. According to reports, approximately 60 members are attending in person, with an additional 60 participating via Zoom.
SYRIZA Central Committee: Warm reception for Rena Dourou
The newly elected leader of SYRIZA’s parliamentary group, Rena Dourou, received a warm welcome, with party members wishing her strength as she steps into her new role.
Rena Dourou: “We must rebuild our party — SYRIZA will be present in parliament”
Speaking from the floor of the Central Committee, Rena Dourou declared: “We honour our parliamentary seats — we do not put them up for auction. We have an obligation to rebuild our party, and SYRIZA will be present in parliament.”
In her address to the Central Committee, the newly elected parliamentary group leader called for reconstruction and unity within SYRIZA, describing the current moment as a “critical turning point” for the party. Dourou acknowledged that SYRIZA stands at a crossroads, but stressed that the party’s future depends on the decisions and collective efforts of its members. “Rarely is the phrase ‘critical turning point’ as real as it is today for our party. SYRIZA is truly at a threshold that many consider a point of no return. I am calling on you, therefore, to help us rebuild our party — because this is within our power,” she said.
The parliamentary group leader emphasised that the effort to rebuild is not driven by a desire to hold on to parliamentary seats, but because, as she put it, SYRIZA is “the only party of the renewalist and radical Left” in the country.
She also noted that “it is the citizens who close the historical chapter of a party,” expressing her conviction that SYRIZA still has a significant role to play in Greek society and within the broader progressive political camp.
Dourou pledged that the party would remain active in society, in parliament, and in the European Parliament, confirming its intention to contest the next elections with the goal of forming a credible alternative progressive governing force.
She placed particular emphasis on the need to restore unity and credibility within SYRIZA, acknowledging that the party has faced serious challenges in recent times. “Our goal is to restore unity and credibility to the party within society,” she stated, calling on all party members to rally together and adding: “No one is expendable — every single one of us is invaluable.”
Pappas: “SYRIZA is here and it is standing strong”
Nikos Pappas was the first to take the floor, opening by wishing Rena Dourou resilience and a strong head for the challenges ahead. “A great deal of work lies ahead. Both Rena and everyone else taking on positions of responsibility know that we are being called upon to reverse a very damaging image that has been built up over the past period. But I believe the message coming out of this session — despite the difficulties and, I would say, the choices made by those who have left — is that SYRIZA is here and it is standing strong. We are sending that message, in spite of predictions that this party has run its course. Not to mention, in spite of the manoeuvres designed to bring about exactly that outcome,” he said.
Pappas continued: “We are here. With our history, our programme, our members, and the responsibility we have taken on before society. And we will continue to be here. Once again, we will overcome these difficulties. And most importantly — and let everyone take careful note of this — we will contest the next elections. We will enter parliament and we will play a leading role in rebuilding the Left: the modern Left that society needs. And we will once again find ourselves on this path alongside comrades — men and women, fighters all — from whom our roads have recently diverged. We will come together again, as we wisely said we would, at the March Central Committee, with all those who are willing and able. In an organised, coordinated, and united fashion.”
Pappas also addressed the position of former prime minister Alexis Tsipras directly: “The Greek Left Alliance and Alexis Tsipras himself have made it clear that they do not wish to pursue a structured process of cooperation with political forces or with SYRIZA. Instead of collective dialogue, these statements reflect an approach that prioritises going it alone — personal negotiations, individual movements of party members, and the gradual construction of a coalition built on defections.
SYRIZA cannot and will not follow that path. Not because we are abandoning a strategy of alliances — quite the opposite. It is precisely because we believe in cooperation that we hold that such cooperation must be based on political equality, open programmatic dialogue, and respect for the autonomy of each political force. Personal negotiations cannot and must not substitute for politics. The movement of individuals cannot substitute for programmatic convergence.”
Pappas also directed sharp criticism at Alexis Tsipras personally, stating: “Statements are circulating in public discourse to the effect that ‘SYRIZA has closed its historical chapter.’ Have some people concluded that Greek society no longer needs a party that pursues politics guided by the vision of socialism with democracy and freedom? That statement is an aggressive one, directed against SYRIZA — just as the claim that was heard calling SYRIZA ‘toxic’ is equally aggressive. SYRIZA is not toxic. SYRIZA has been the systematic target of toxic attacks. And it would be wise for such things not to be said — especially by people who were adversaries… Those who conclude, or those who are working to ensure, that SYRIZA’s chapter is closed will not succeed. Because all of us are here — we will rebuild SYRIZA, we will broaden it, we will renew it, we will reconnect it with the creative forces of the Left and of society, and we will once again make our party and our political camp a force that will positively influence the political landscape — in a left-wing and progressive direction.”
