Greek Parliament Votes on Tempi Train Crash Inquiry

The Greek Parliament is set for a marathon session today to vote on establishing a preliminary inquiry committee to investigate the tragic Tempi train crash.

The session, expected to be tense, will determine which of 14 political figures, including former Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis, will face scrutiny and for what offenses.

The debate, starting at 9:00 AM, will see Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis address the plenary, following his earlier remarks accusing the opposition of exploiting the tragedy for political gain. Mitsotakis criticised opposition parties for alleging high treason against him and his ministers, calling it an attempt to undermine parliamentary integrity. Former Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis and former Infrastructure Minister Christos Spirtzis are also expected to speak, while other implicated officials may submit written statements.

Three proposals are under consideration, with the ruling New Democracy (ND) party’s motion—supported by 154 MPs, including independents Charalampos Katsivardas and Dimitris Kyriazidis—focusing on potential misdemeanor breaches of duty. The PASOK proposal, backed by 34 MPs, including independent Baran Bourhan, targets multiple ministers for felony charges related to disrupting fixed-track transport. A third, harsher proposal by Maria Karystianou, supported by Greek Solution, Niki, Plefsi Eleftherias, and six independents aligned with Stefanos Kasselakis, accuses figures like Mitsotakis and Karamanlis of high treason, serial manslaughter, and other serious crimes. This is likely to gain further support from independents Areti Papaioannou, Nikos Papadopoulos, and former Spartans MPs.

The session will feature speeches from party representatives, including Andreas Nikolakopoulos (ND), Milena Apostolaki (PASOK), Theofilos Xanthopoulos (SYRIZA), and others. SYRIZA plans to abstain from the vote after its proposal failed to secure enough signatures, as will the Communist Party (KKE) and New Left.

A secret ballot, involving over 4,000 voting papers across 14 urns—one for each politician—will begin at 9:00 PM and last approximately four hours. Nearly 10,000 pages of ballots and documents have been printed, with measures to prevent voting errors. The urns are arranged by proposal order, starting with Karamanlis and including Mitsotakis, Spirtzis, and others. MPs can vote “YES,” “NO,” “PRESENT,” or “BLANK” and may support multiple proposals.

The outcome, expected early Thursday, will shape the next steps in addressing accountability for the Tempi disaster, a deeply divisive issue in Greek politics.

(Source: To Vima)