Nikos Filis

New Democracy MP Giorgos Koumoutsakos pressed charges against the unknown individuals that attacked him outside Greek Parliament on Thursday evening, during the protest of Pontian Association of Greece in Syntagma to protest against statements made by Education Minister Nikos Filis.

Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) Education Minister Nikos Filis is under fire for his comments during an interview on Monday refuting the Pontic Genocide followed by conservative New Democracy deputy Miltiadis Varvitsiotis’ revelations that high school students are no longer being taught about this dark chapter in recent history.

Greek Education Minister Nikos Filis is a persona non grata following comments made on private STAR TV where he refuted the occurence of the Pontic Genocide that resulted in the slaughter of tens of thousands of Pontic Greeks of the Black Sea region by Turks almost a century ago.

Minister of Education Nikos Filis spoke to Real FM station and characterized Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras wealthy and privileged because his children go to private schools.

Education Minister Nikos Filis refered to the VAT hike for private education and the current teacher shortages in public schools in an interview with private MEGA TV on Saturday morning. His statement concerning the fact that a VAT hike in private education is nothing more than “peanuts” had the press reeling in recent days.

The Economist published an article commenting on the relationship of the Greek government with the Church and saying that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Education Minister Nikos Filis have softened their view on secularism.

Archbishop Ieronymos lashed out at the government decision that would simplify Greek students of getting exemptions from religious studies, following a statement by Alternate Education Minister Sia Anagnostopoulou.

There was enthusiasm at SYRIZA’s headquarters on Koumoundourou street from the first exit polls that put the party ahead of its main rival, the conservative New Democracy party. As the night progressed with votes tallied in the party’s favor, reserved joy gave way to smiles and cheers… and the flow of whiskey.

Yet another more-or-less procedural session in Parliament, this time during a committee-level vote on Wednesday to reconvene the legislature after its summer hiatus, turned into a parody, with brash Parliament President exchanging insults and accusations with representatives of political parties – including her own!

The rift within Syriza is deepening, as the party’s parliamentary Spokesperson Nikos Filis threw down the gauntlet to the leader of the Left Platform Panagiotis Lafazanis implicitly calling on him to form a separate party, if the dissenters decided not to vote in favor of the government-backed new bailout plans and the associated executive bills.