Speaking exclusively to MEGA, Maria Karystianou said the, “Hope for Democracy” movement is ready for elections, stressing that its candidate lists keep growing and will be announced soon.
“Of course we are ready. There are candidacies that have been finalized in a way, that we have agreed on, but the list of applications keeps growing. That is why we are still in a process of selection and discussions, but everything will be announced. So if early elections come up, we are there. We will speed things up and we are ready.”
“Justice, certainly (is our strong suit). Because the changes we propose for the justice system are groundbreaking. It is what society needs for catharsis, because that is why we were created. But our economic program is also very strong. It supports everything from the primary sector and small and medium-sized businesses to students, through housing and family policy.”
“It was a demand from society, because let’s be honest, we have seen Article 86 whitewash politicians many, many times. Nobody believes in it anymore. Apart from politicians, nobody trusts Article 86, which is also the article that contradicts what EU law provides.”
“So we are talking specifically about Article 86, saying that it should be considered non-existent in the legal world, precisely because it is contrary to our Constitution and to what the rule of law requires. This means its abolition will have retroactive effect, which is also very important and which nobody else is saying.”
“So in essence, what do we want? The abolition of Article 86 with retroactive effect so that politicians can be held accountable. We are talking about a real separation of powers. That means the executive will not appoint the judiciary. We are talking about abolishing immunity from prosecution. What does immunity from prosecution even mean? And we are talking about establishing a constitutional court, which will give citizens the sense that when the state wrongs them, they will have a real chance of vindication.”
“I have sued Mitsotakis for high treason”
At the same time, she sharply criticized Kyriakos Mitsotakis, accusing him of trying to help political figures avoid accountability.
“When I sat down and put everything in order, I saw that my main problem was not the politician. My main problem was a justice system that did not exist. Because if judges did their job and were able to investigate Mr. Karamanlis, Mr. Triantopoulos, and Mr. Mitsotakis, there would be no issue,” she said about the Tempi case.
“Let me remind you that 1,300,000 citizens asked for exactly this. So what did Mr. Mitsotakis say? That Parliament will once again have the final say, but in a worse way. It will not move forward without delay. That means you, I, and the public will not find out which politician is currently involved in a scandal. It will stay in the investigating judge’s office for as long as they want, for years, who knows, and close to the statute of limitations we might hear something. This shows exactly the fear Mr. Mitsotakis and all politicians have of real accountability and scrutiny.”
“Mr. Triantopoulos is one name he picks out of a case file that went forward with how many other politicians, and for only one crime, one offense: breach of duty. What did Mr. Triantopoulos do on the prime minister’s orders? He directly intervened at the site. He directly intervened in the judiciary.”
“The prosecutor is above everyone, especially when investigating a crime. Who is the politician who will go there and say, now I’m in charge? That is exactly what happened in Tempi. Our Constitution has anticipated this, and there is a specific offense for which I have filed a lawsuit against the prime minister and the other politicians, and that is high treason.”
“When the executive branch interferes with the judiciary, it is the offense of high treason. Because it is not only when I betray my country to foreigners. That is high treason too.”
“My practice was inspected”
Maria Karystianou said she was unfairly targeted by Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis over the medical practice she runs.
“What we have here is unfair targeting. If I had done something? Yes, of course, no question. Someone who wants to enter politics should be above suspicion and should be a clean person. I agree with that. Just as I agree with inspections taking place. We were among the first to talk about health mapping, where everything will be recorded and the ministry will know at any moment what practices I have, what they do, and so on. Won’t that help them know that certain specialties are missing in some areas?”
“Plasmapheresis is performed at many clinics, and I don’t know whether they have special licensing. The inspection will have to tell us that. Plasmapheresis in a public facility is done for specific medical reasons. In private clinics, it is done as part of longevity medicine, regenerative medicine. It is done in both Thessaloniki and Athens.”
“There is an advertisement where the owner of a private clinic talks about the plasmapheresis performed there. It is the clinic that Mr. Georgiadis inaugurated.”
“My practice was inspected on Wednesday. They saw the machines, and I sent them the documents they asked for. There is no legislation on bioresonance. Anyone can have it. You can have a bioresonance machine at home too. We don’t need to declare it, no.”
“I was 100% politically targeted by Mr. Georgiadis. I am very sorry, but I feel I was also targeted by Ms. Pagoni, who holds an institutional position whose role is to protect doctors in the broad sense, except when someone has broken the law. But when it is part of an inspection, and especially when it turns out there is no problem, a person should not hear their name in public and then hear that I own an illegal machine.”
Maria Karystianou also addressed the serious financial problems of public hospitals, which face the risk of European sanctions.
“I hear there are billions in scandals, scandals like the one with the hospital deficit and the other well-known ones, OPEKEPE, the Recovery Fund. That is money. So if I didn’t hand that money out for ‘frappé,’ if I didn’t pour it into the hospital deficit, if I didn’t use it here and there to pay fines for the VOAK and so on, and for everything else we pay for, including overpriced projects, I would save resources. Investing in staff so that a facility works properly does not come second or third. It comes first in my program.”
“We will not cooperate with ND or PASOK. Tsipras is a memorandum prime minister, Konstantopoulou is part of the system”
Maria Karystianou said her political identity is a blend of ideologies that puts the rule of law, the welfare state, and private initiative first, avoiding the traditional Left-Right divide. Her clear goal is an outright majority, and she categorically ruled out cooperation with the traditional parties of power, such as ND and PASOK, as well as with figures like Alexis Tsipras or Zoe Konstantopoulou.
“PASOK owes 500 million to the banks. New Democracy owes the same. For us, these things are unthinkable and need to be investigated. Mr. Tsipras is a memorandum prime minister, so we cannot cooperate. Ms. Konstantopoulou is part of the system. We have not seen her as prime minister, but we have seen how she operates in opposition. There are some things we agree on and some we disagree on. We are the new, the different.”
“Let me be judged politically, but I see character assassination”
Finally, Maria Karystianou said she understands how harsh the political arena is, and charged that instead of honest political debate, she is facing “character assassination.”
“I draw strength because I feel I am 100% in line with what my child would have wanted. I feel very good about what I am doing and I consider it my duty to see it through. And to see it through, I have to do all of this. Being judged politically does not scare me. I knew I would be judged politically.”
“It is a duty to my daughter’s memory. Now it concerns everyone. I feel I have a duty to all children, so they don’t go through what my child went through. And, if you like, a duty and a form of help to parents, so they don’t experience what I and the other families went through.”
“I have no problem being judged politically. Yes, let me be judged politically, let me talk about my program, let me engage in political debate. But I don’t see political debate. Do you know what I see? Character assassination. As a citizen, I want to see politicians engage in dignified political debate. That shows respect.”
“I believe that in the end there will be justice for everyone, and you will see in the elections that some people will be rubbing their eyes in disbelief. I have already seen it, don’t ask me how. I don’t know. I feel it 100%,” she said.
Maria Karystianou is a pediatrician and politician, leader of the political movement “Hope for Democracy”, and the mother of the 19-year-old Martha Psaropoulou, one of the 57 victims of the Tempi rail disaster of February 28 2023.
A.G
