Papakonstantinou is accused of removing from the so-called Lagarde list the names of four of his relatives who had savings at an HSBC bank branch in Geneva. The catalogue of the deposits, held by more than 2,000 wealthy Greeks at this particular bank was given to Papakonstantinou by Lagarde with the purpose of pursuing tax offenders in October 2010.
It should be reminded that Papakonstantinou was the finance minister when George Papandreou threw our country into the arms of the IMF/Troika and was one of the key players when our nation signed its first bailout agreement in May 2010.
The scandal dominated the headlines for quite a long time, but if one was to examine the political history of Greece (and the scandals that have seen the light since the 1980s it certainly wasn't one of the most scandalous).
It is true that many who benefited from PASOK's rule all these years, and especially those who supported George Papandreou, acted shocked when they discovered that the sophisticated, LSE-trained ex-finance minister (Papakonstantinou) was now facing such accusations, but they too realized that when you do the crime... you have to do the time.
The former right-hand of George Papapandreou not only failed to crack down on tax-dodging – which, at more than 27 billion Euros a year, is the biggest single drain on the debt-stricken Greek economy – but he also doctored a list of suspected culprits to remove the names of three of his very own relatives.
In upscale circles... Where shallowness is embraced by champagne, arrogance, greed, and dirty corporate secrets, the news was shocking (not because it was wrong, but because it was revealed).
Of course mum is the word for Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos who we all know had possession of this evidence (in a drawer in his home) for quite a few months. (But we here at HellasFrappe are certain that citizens will show him exactly how they feel about this at the upcoming euro elections... be certain of that frappers!)
In short, Papakonstantinou is finally going to be indicted on charges of breach of faith, violation of duty and doctoring a document. And the man who spent more than half his life abroad, in London, New York and Paris will finally realize that money is irrelevant when you commit crimes against your very own country.
Since he was accused reports claim that five members of the Financial Crimes Squad have already given evidence to special magistrate Iosif Tsalaganidis, who is expected to preside over the case.
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