Minister of State for Transport-Infrastructure, Giorgos Gerapetritis, in a press conference on Wednesday, expressed his sorrow for the "unprecedented national tragedy that has left its mark on us all".
"Suffering must be followed by catharsis," he underlined.
The responsibility that belongs to the government has been assumed, Gerapetritis said and added: "I must again apologise on behalf of the government and myself, personally, to the families of the victims, to all Greek citizens, for not being able to prevent this tragic accident. The apology is completely sincere, not feigned, and does not attempt to deflect any real responsibility."
The Minister of State made it clear from the beginning that the government has no intention of interfering in either the judicial investigation, on the one hand, nor in the administrative investigation being conducted by a group of experts, on the other hand. As he added, this is no time for confrontation.
He pointed out that, regardless of any human errors, if there had been a complete rail telemanagement system in the country, the accident would not have happened. In this way, Gerapetritis referred to the issue of completing the works connected with the operation of the railway. He also thanked all those involved in handling the consequences of the tragedy from the first moment.
Gerapetritis stated that the budget for the Greek railway is increasing. As he noted, before the accident in Tempi, the amount of 185 million euros was included in the Greek programme of the Recovery Fund for upgrading infrastructure.
Τhe State Minister praised the efforts of the railway workers, who are willing to do everything in their power to upgrade safety measures. He also said that a stricter framework will be introduced for vandalism and thefts involving the railway network.
He clarified that until the technological upgrade is completed, the operation of the train will only take place under conditions of absolute safety. "We will significantly upgrade the level of safety," he emphasised, announcing that this will include a mandatory requirement to have two station masters at each station. As part of the changes in this first phase, he added, there will be a better coordination in the context of the current technological capabilities.
"Our wish is for the railway to resume operating as soon as possible, but to have first ensured the essential conditions. .... We desire this to be as soon as possible, possibly by the end of the month," added Gerapetritis.
In reply to a question by the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA), regarding the causes of the accident, he noted: "It is something that goes beyond my own role. The reasons will be assessed first and foremost by criminal justice, at a very high level. On the other hand, there will be an administrative investigation that will provide the answers."
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