Christos Triantopoulos announced his resignation as Deputy Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection in Parliament on Tuesday while firmly denying any role in an alleged cover-up of evidence related to the Tempe railway disaster, which claimed 57 lives just over two years ago.
“Today, I am submitting my resignation as Deputy Minister for Climate Crisis and from the portfolio of state relief, which was created from scratch with measurable, tangible results.”
He had first announced his intention to step down from his post just under a month ago when a parliamentary committee was preparing to examine the Tempe disaster.
Triantopoulos announced his resignation during parliamentary debate on a main opposition PASOK party proposal for a parliamentary pre-investigation committee to examine potential offenses by Triantopoulos, who served as deputy minister to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the time of the accident.
Tuesday’s debate precedes a censure motion against the government, which PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis confirmed he will submit on Wednesday.
Addressing Parliament, Triantopoulos categorically rejected accusations of a cover-up, citing the findings of the Hellenic Aviation and Railway Safety Investigation Agency (HARSIA). The report identified severe safety lapses and government mismanagement, noting that critical evidence was lost due to improper handling of the accident site. However, HARSIA’s head, Christos Papadimitriou, has dismissed claims of a deliberate cover-up.
During Tuesday’s debate, Triantopoulos reiterated that the investigating committee had found no evidence of a key coordinator behind any alleged cover-up.
Earlier Tuesday, Vassilis Papageorgiou, General Secretary for Civil Protection, resigned, stating that the primary purpose of his decision aims to facilitate Greece’s judicial investigation into the Tempe railway disaster.