by Magda Panoutsopoulou

ATHENS 

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Thursday told the central committee of the radical left coalition SYRIZA that he proposed to hold a snap referendum in order to overcome the split within the party over the bailout deal with Greece’s European creditors.

At the central committee meeting, Tsipras called for party unity. But he was opposed by members of the Left Platform, the faction led by former energy minister Panagiotis Lafazanis and former alternate defense minister Kostas Isichos. The latter, present at the meeting, demanded a "coordinated plan for immediate disentanglement from the memorandum and the productive reconstruction of the country."  

Tsipras called for party unity. 

“Although the decision to accept the bailout terms was difficult, some here have another view, they do not accept the government's analysis and believe there was an alternative,” Tsipras said.

Tsipras asked those opposed to the bailout to explain their alternative plan, and to show how it would be sustainable.

Tsipras called for “division within the parliamentary group to end,” saying that the government cannot continue to exploit the votes of the opposition to sustain an "irrational dualism" within its ranks.

"I propose that, whatever the collective decision of our party might be, that we agree that we can't continue like this," Tsipras said. "We must make a commitment that the decisions of the majority...will be respected."