Opposition blasts government over state flaws

Firefighters and volunteers try to extinguish a fire at a monastery, as a wildfire burns in Menidi, near Athens, Greece, on August 23, 2023. [Elias Marcou/Reuters]

The numerous out-of-control fires in many parts of Greece in recent days have turned the spotlight back on the enduring problems of the state machinery and failures to address them adequately.

Given that the ruling conservatives are into their fifth year at the helm and these glaring shortcomings remain, the inevitable political cost to the government cannot be overstated.

This was duly noted by the opposition, which has heavily criticized the government, accusing it of failing to prepare for the fires and of failing to effectively coordinate forces and resources to reduce the devastating effects.

"The government, as in the summer of 2021, is quick to attribute the failure to respond to fires to the climate crisis, the heatwave and gale-force winds. But trying to place the blame elsewhere (e.g. local government) rather than on its own ineptitude is not borne...

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