Greek opposition confronts gov't in parliament over train accident

ATHENS

Greece's opposition confronted the government in parliament on Monday as anger grows over last week's train accident that left at least 57 dead.

Both the main opposition SYRIZA-PS and social democrat opposition PASOK argued that the government was directly involved in appointing the station master of the Larissa train station, who is currently thought to be liable for the accident and is being held in detention, according to public broadcaster ERT.

In response, Development Minister Adonis Georgiadis underlined that the placement of the station master was made by the railway company, not by the government.

Moreover, Education Minister Niki Kerameus struck a harsh tone against SYRZA and maintained that SYRIZA, when it was in government in 2018, did not issue a public apology for the Mati wildfires in the Attica region that year.

The parliamentary session began with a minute's silence in memory of the victims.

In a related development, the EU Commission's President Ursula Von der Leyen said on Twitter that the bloc would provide technical support to Greece to help it modernize its railways and improve safety.

Meanwhile, unions of civil servants, primary teachers, and maritime workers got on board a 24-hour nationwide strike called by major trade union PAME for March 8.

The accident also seems to have diverted public attention from looming early elections expected to be held on April 9, as government spokesperson Giannis Economou said the vote was not presently among the concerns of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Last week on Tuesday night, a passenger train collided with a freight train around the town of Tempi in the northern Larissa province.

The official death toll stands at 57, including many university students and nine train crew members.