Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised that those found guilty of the Tempe train tragedy will be punished in a video message on Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the accident that claimed the lives of 57 people.
“Some relief will come when all the causes of the evil are brought to light. When all doubts are dispelled. When even the most absurd rumors are disproved. And, above all, when the guilty are punished. And that will happen,” Mitsotakis said.
A definitive account of what happened and who may be at fault has not been delivered, with investigators in an official inquiry not due to finish questioning until March 8.
Relatives have appointed their experts to the case, arguing that official investigators wasted time and overlooked vital evidence, including the intense fire that broke out after the collision with the freight train.
“Only Justice is the one that will shed light on the case, as we all want. It is already moving quickly and to the highest degree, calling the first of those to account. I have complete confidence in Justice and I am sure it will rise to the occasion,” Mitsotakis stated.
“Our mission is to turn pain into action. So that the organizations that serve the citizens operate safely, consistently and professionally. The State should not remain a prisoner of bureaucracy, which delays critical projects. And the courts must decide in a timely manner, especially for cases that concern society,” he added.
Τragedy of Tempe hurts and angers society
President of the Hellenic Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou on Wednesday said that “the pain remains undiminished and the questions remain unanswered.”
She noted that it was “the state’s duty to attribute responsibility and to ensure that our country will never again experience such a blow to the citizens’ safety and trust.”
In her statement, Sakellaropoulou said: “One year later, the tragedy of Tempe hurts and angers society. The pain is undiminished and the questions remain unanswered. Our thoughts today are with the families of the victims, the injured, with the passengers who experienced the horror of that night.”
“Words can’t heal the wounds. The State must take responsibility and ensure that our country will never again experience such a blow to the citizens’ safety and trust,” the president concluded.
Opposition raises questions about the Tempe tragedy
Main opposition SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance leader Stefanos Kasselakis on Wednesday posted a message on social media.
“Tempe, one year after. A promise to the memory of the 57 people that lost their lives. They must not and will not be forgotten. We will stand with the members of their families in their struggle for justice,” Kasselakis wrote.
“A year seems like a long time. A lot happens in a year. For our society, however, the clock stopped on the fateful night of February 28, 2023,” opposition PASOK-Movement of Change leader Nikos Androulakis said.
Androulakis stressed that “the causes of the accident, the unacceptable management of the area and the investigation, everything that followed, confirm that time has stopped in Greece. The ‘why’ and ‘how’ of this tragedy remain unanswered. The guilty and those responsible, for some, remain invisible.”
As the leader of PASOK-KINAL noted, “the reflexes of a State that normally investigates, detects, punishes and finally corrects, remain disappointing. A year is a long time to have done none of the things we are obliged to do as a State.”