Former PASOK minister Louka Katseli provided testimony in a high-profile investigation into allegations by Greece's one-time representative to the IMF, Panagiotis Roumeliotis, who last month charged that the IMF-tailored economic programme commenced by the previous Papandreou government was "condemned" from the start.
Katseli, a long-time PASOK cadre and former minister who subsequently left the party to form her own out-of-Parliament political movement, was the first witness in the investigation following Roumeliotis' allegations.
She reportedly remained in the relevant prosecutors' office for three hours and subsequently stated that "my testimony had two parts: The first referred to Mr. Roumeliotis' statements regarding a briefing for (the then) prime minister and finance minister on the IMF's positions, and particularly those of (then IMF chief) Dominique Strauss-Kahn".
"I told the prosecutor that I did not participate in the meeting and I do not know anything about those contacts. The second part (of the testimony) referred to the management of the crisis, and I reiterated my position, which I have stated in public, namely, that the systemic debt crisis in Greece and competitiveness crisis cannot be solved with policies of violent austerity and extreme fiscal adjustment; this necessitates a coordinated policy with the European Central Bank to restructure the debt and to reduce lending costs..."
Asked whether there was a briefing by Roumeliotis for top government members at the time, Katseli said there were several private meetings with Roumeliotis and other economists on what can be done. "However, there was no official position from the IMF on a different course of action."
Katseli was the first witness in the probe, coming after statements to the same prosecutors by Roumeliotis himself. Former PASOK minister Gerassimos Arsenis, Katseli's husband, as well as another top former PASOK minister, Vasso Papandreou, along with two of the Papandreou government top economic advisers, Giorgos Zannias and Petros Christodoulou, have also been called to provide statements. (AMNA)
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