Tsiaras: There is given political will to put an end to illegal practices in OPEKEPE

"Unraveling the tangle in the OPEKEPE case is the least of our obligations to society. It is a pity that the opposition, instead of sending a consistent, educational message, adopts this stance," Tsiaras said underlining that they do not see the bigger picture and focus on petty political confrontation.

Referring to the results of the inspections carried out so far, Tsiaras revealed that "we have found, in more than 30,000 tax identification numbers, cases of producers who, in the eco-schemes, had submitted more than 49,000 forged certificates. 

This constitutes a chronic problem that had not been addressed in the past and which we must now tackle without fail."

 According to him, the problem of organisations that distribute European funds "is more general across the EU," and the need for transparency is urgent.

 "Transparency must be the key characteristic of their operation. The steps we have taken are visible. We are making specific efforts and we will continue," he noted.

Tsiaras reiterated that there is a "given political will" from the government and the Ministry "to never again allow such practices and behaviours toward OPEKEPE and European funds."

 Finally, he referred to the Common Agricultural Policy, giving assurances that the OPEKEPE case will not affect the funds that Greece will receive from the EU under the new CAP.