Mitsotakis: I'm ready to take tough decisions for the Public Sector

The outgoing minister A. Manitakis said the layoffs will not make the public sector more flexible and urged the new minister to repel the requirements of the troika.

During the handover ceremony Anthonis Manitakis talked about the need to create a national strategy against the troika.

He called Mitsotakis to not accept the request that the transfer of 12,500 employees should become a prerequisite and added that this matter needs attention and not hasty moves that of a punitive character, because they would create a lot of problems. He also said that Greece will not acquire a flexible public sector by sacking 15,000 employees, without criteria.

He talked about the institution of evaluation saying that it would be impossible to assess 650,000 employees based on their intelligence and said that he proposed the evaluation under efficiency criteria.

Taking his turn, Kyriakos Mitsotakis praised Manitakis’ work and called it "important."

According to Mitsotakis, the problems lie in the structures and procedures in the Greek public administration and less on its people.

He rejected the dilemma for a small or big government body and said the main goal is an effective state.

Commenting on the collaboration of ministers with the Troika representatives, he said it is unfair for ministers to be presented as dispatchers of memorandum obligations.

Lastly, he said he will take difficult decisions and stressed that if these are explained properly they will find the support of Greek society.