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Brash new government holds Greeks in thrall
[IN.REUTERS] Barely a week in power, Greece's new leftwing government is winning over an increasingly enthusiastic domestic audience by moving boldly on populist campaign pledges at home even as it strikes a more moderate note abroad.While selling a message of reassurance on a diplomatic charm offensive in Europe, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has surged to a 68 percent approval rating at home by taking a radical line to show that the old, unreliable world of Greek politics as usual is out -- both symbolically and otherwise. Ministers, many sporting Tsipras's no-tie look, drove up in their own cars on their first day at work last week, some complaining about traffic to waiting cameras. Barricades outside parliament to hold back protesters were taken down. Riot police were notably absent at a demonstration over the weekend, leaving protesters with no one to vent their anger against. Bigger changes are also afoot. Even before the government formally unveils its programme this weekend, ministers have moved with dizzying speed to tell television cameras their plans to raise the minimum wage, halt unpopular sales of national assets, rehire workers fired without cause and reinstate a Christmas bonus for poor pensioners. "He is doing much better than expected both at home and abroad," said Costas Panagopoulos, head of the Alco polling institute in Athens, adding that the new government's first week in power had injected a dose of confidence into the country. Posted by: Fred 2015-02-03 |
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