In a version of pop aesthetics, with a black and white poster and under the central slogan “our SYRIZA,” Stefanos Kasselakis, made his reappearance in the public sphere yesterday, bringing closer the announcement of his candidacy for the presidency of SYRIZA PS. In just two words and saying “I am here”, Mr. Kasselakis attempted to surprise after several days of silence, sending a message to the party base and primarily to his intra-party rivals.

Although his candidacy for the leadership of SYRIZA PS has been almost discounted, Stefanos Kasselakis preferred his initials to the party logo in yesterday’s post, while the formalization of his entry into the election race is set for the end of the week. At the same time, statements are raging projecting a split in the party on the part of the “Casselists” for the aftermath of the internal party elections in case the deposed President prevails. “Those who cannot serve the Kasselakis plan have no reason to remain in the party”, said yesterday the MP of Kilkis, Petros Pappas, raising the levels of internal party tension, while “it is a shame for all of us that we have ended up in this situation! There is no way we all go together” described in Parapolitika Fm, the deputy of Corfu, Alexander Avlonitis.

In this climate, it did not go unnoticed that the post of Stefanos Kasselakis came a few hours after yesterday’s position of the Vice President of the House, Olga Gerovassili, who made it clear that she will not be a candidate for the leadership of SYRIZA PS. “I chose at this moment not to enter the process, because there is a lot at stake,” Gerovassili said, referring to what happened in the last year, calling it an “attack on the collective process” and “divisions”. At the same time, “I was the first to sound the alarm about Mr.Kasselakis, at the conference in February. Then I took sides, for the European elections. Proof that my prefecture was the first in Greece, “recalled the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament, while referring to the possibility of Socrates Famellos candidacy, noted that she finds it “decent”.

“The race at the moment is more than who will be the leader, it is much more difficult and requires larger compositions. I have said my opinion about Mr. Famello, that he was a serious chairman of the parliamentary group, and he made a great effort, but that does not mean that I agreed with his whole course. The main thing is the next day. In SYRIZA – PC we will fight a tautological and existential battle. We have to reflect and recover, to give solutions that unite us”, Mrs. Gerovassili described, concluding that “and apart from the leadership solutions, which are of course required, we have to give solutions of perspective and recover our lost credibility and, possibly in the eyes of many, our wounded dignity”.

Famellos: “We are here”

For his part, “I prefer the message ‘We are here’. The “we are” in politics, and especially on the left, is richer, it doesn’t have just one. So, for me, “we are”, because it is an identity, it also has the spontaneous response “yes, I will be”, Socrates Famellos commented, speaking to Attica tv against the background of the poster of Stefanos Kasselakis, whom he harshly criticized (following his statement to the Central Committee), saying that “Kasselakis’ policy takes SYRIZA away from the right path”. However, “it’s too early to say anything like that,” Famellos responded to the possibility of his candidacy, given that a political agreement must be formed around him and a solid bloc of forces to support it.

In this perspective, the role of the “87” group is expected to be pivotal, as they await the relevant announcements to meet and weigh the data of the electoral race for the leadership, to arrive at the person they will support for the SYRIZA PS Presidency. Although Socrates Famellos shares ideological and party affiliations with most people, his association with Stefanos Kasselakis over the past year, and his attitude at last February’s Congress, when together with Nikos Pappas and Giorgos Tsipras, “threw a lifeline to Mr Kasselakis”, according to some “87” executives, seem indelible.

Kotzias on Kasselakis: “He’s just not a leftist”

At the same time, former Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias, in a rare television appearance, fired shots at the deposed president, telling Action24 that “Mr Kasselakis is simply not a leftist, for me.” He described the deposed President of SYRIZA PS as being supported by hooligans, far rightists saying of Mr. Kasselakis that he has “a hooliganism that cannot be played” and “this is his creation”, while he did not hide his discomfort with the attacks by members of the Kasselakis side against Alexis Tsipras.

Polakis: “I’m here too!”

Strong reflexes, however, seem to have the candidate for President, Pavlos Polakis, who was the first to react to the poster of Mr. Kasselakis yesterday, even posting an identical photo of him, under the title “I am here too!”. At the same time, Mr. Polakis openly challenged Mr. Kasselakis with his poster in the background, commenting “No serious talk will we say?”, while he set the first framework for the political confrontation, for “a SYRIZA core of the progressive party with strong social coalitions that will be the alternative solution of the government”, as he said.

In detail the post of Pavlos Polakis:

I AM HERE, too!!

Click here….

1) I have nominated myself.

Anyone else?

2) Any serious talk?

-Will we guarantee the united course by stopping the divisive positions from within and without?

-Will we talk about a clear programmatic reason in conflict with the complex, about redistribution in favour of labour, with clear red lines in foreign policy, with public control of one bank, the PPC and one refinery, with protection of borrowers and primary housing, with a strong social state?

-We should make it clear that we do not want a small and marginal SYRIZA or a useful complement to controlled centre-left solutions BUT a SYRIZA core of the progressive party with strong social coalitions that will be the alternative GOVERNMENT SOLUTION to the closed-loop Mitsotakis system;

Spirtzis: “We are here”

In the wave of comments raised by the poster of Stefanos Kasselakis in social networks, there was no lack of reactions from the “87”, with the former Minister, Christos Spirtzis posting a short video under the title “We are here”, noting with meaning that “hope is neither black nor purple”, while asking for respect to the history of the party. “SYRIZA will never acquire owners… We are here for the cooperation of the progressive space,” Spirtzis noted, while his video features photos of Andreas Papandreou and Alexis Tsipras.

A post shared by Χρήστος Σπίρτζης (@christos.spirtzis)