\n<\/p>\n
Former minister and longtime Thessaloniki MP Haris Kastanidis has resigned from the main opposition PASOK, issuing a strongly worded letter accusing party leader Nikos Androulakis of sidelining him and reshaping the party to exclude him from political life.<\/p>\n
In his resignation letter, Kastanidis said he was leaving \u201cthe PASOK of Mr Androulakis\u201d but not the party\u2019s founding ideological principles. \u201cI do not resign from PASOK of democratic socialist ideas. I resign from Mr Androulakis\u2019 party,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
He accused the leadership of systematically obstructing his political activity, including excluding him from parliamentary representation in Thessaloniki after the 2023 elections and pressuring party organizations not to invite him to speak at events.<\/p>\n
The 70-year-old, first elected to parliament in 1981, also criticized a recent party statute change introducing term limits for lawmakers with retroactive effect, saying it was designed specifically to block his candidacy. He accused Androulakis of double standards, noting that the rule exempts former PASOK leaders who have served more than 20 years in parliament.<\/p>\n
He further described Androulakis\u2019 public argument that long parliamentary tenure fosters clientelism as \u201coffensive, ahistorical and self-serving,\u201d suggesting it was politically motivated.<\/p>\n
\u201cDignity must respond when impropriety is repeated,\u201d Kastanidis wrote, closing his letter with a quote attributed to French writer Francois-Rene de Chateaubriand: \u201cThe less significant those in power are, the more they delight in being petty.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said he remains proud of his political record, citing his role in drafting legislation establishing Greece\u2019s ombudsman, creating an anti-money laundering authority, and advancing anti-corruption laws during his tenure as justice minister.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n