Nikos Androulakis and Alexis Tsipras are engaging in a bidding war of promises, handing out free tickets for public transportation.
Nikos Androulakis kicked things off on Thursday evening at a rally… young people, he “pledged” that as a government they would legislate for free travel for young people up to 24 years old on public transportation.
Alexis Tsipras’s comeback was better, since he, speaking at the conference organized by Oikonomikos Tachydromos, played his trump card with free public transportation for everyone except tourists in Athens and Thessaloniki—logically, this will also apply to… Piraeus—even arguing that the cost is lower than the subsidies provided to address the crises.
We do not know if the measure will be permanent. In any case, Alexis Tsipras copied Andreas Papandreou and Nikos Androulakis was more… reserved, though he, in turn, did not clarify why up to 24 and not up to 25 years old for example.
The bidding war of promises has begun. Soon, the two contenders for second place will be promising everything to everyone. Of course, one of them has a history of… promises regarding the Thessaloniki programs, but the other contender also seems to be following in his footsteps with… consistency.
Both claim to have a plan for the day after. The question is whether this plan is feasible, unless the logic that “we’ll beat the drums and the markets will dance” prevails once again.
In any case, since we have paid dearly for both PASOK’s free handouts and Tsipras’s free handouts, it would be good if they explained how they will find the money for everything they are promising and will promise.
In any case, now that the bidding war on promises has begun, we await the next one who, along with free public transportation, will also offer free coffee and water…
