Caretaker PM sets guidelines for ministers

Issuing the first set of guidelines for the interim government, caretaker prime minister Ioannis Sarmas urged his transitional cabinet members to exercise neutrality, impartiality and objectivity after the swearing-in ceremony at the Presidential Palace on Friday.

“I called you here because I wanted to provide you with some directions as you assume your ministries, in preparation for Saturday's regular cabinet meeting,” said Sarmas, a senior judge, at the beginning of his address at the Maximos Mansion.

“We must be neutral, impartial, objective and, above all, we must weigh up our actions,” he said, so that they are not interpreted as interference in favor of or against a political party in the electoral contest that follows.

Regarding Saturday's session, he said, “It will define the government's policies, which are intended for the upcoming few weeks.”

“Our government is an interim government led by one of the presidents of the three highest courts. The essence of the judicial function is independence and impartiality,» he stressed.

«This means that the aim of the Constitution is [to establish] an independent, politically and party-neutral government. This is our primary duty,” he said.

“It is not normal government policy, it is government policy for a few weeks. But nevertheless, that is what the Constitution and the law require. We must have a direction and the prime minister oversees the implementation of government policy,” he added.

In their first statements, coming to the Presidential Mansion for the swearing-in ceremony, the caretaker ministers referred to their obligation to ensure that the state continues to function in the interim.

“We will exercise this duty as we should so that there are no gaps in the functioning of the state,” said caretaker foreign minister Vassilis Kaskarelis.

Education Minister Christos Kittas, said that “at the moment my mind is on the children who are preparing for exams,” while Justice Minister Filippos Spyropoulos vowed to “leave as few loose ends as possible.”