Papandreou: I am not to blame for the fraud in Tzevelekos’ NGO

"I put the NGOs in order," replied Papandreou, after the uproar sparked by the revelation that an NGO with the specific object of demining areas “gnawed” at 9 million euros from the Greek State from 2000 to 2004.
 
The announcement issued by the office of the then Foreign minister, stated that during the period when George Papandreou headed the Foreign Ministry, "he put an end to a regime that evaluated the NGOs without defined criteria and openness, and launched a specific institutional framework that since then is governing everything regarding the NGOs."
 
According to Papandreou's office, "those who are trying to implicate his name will be exposed."
 
For the case a felony file has been formed against eight people involved, while the mastermind and chairman of the NGO has been imprisoned. Criminal proceedings were brought against the president of this NGO Kostas Tzevelekos, his wife, a former civil servant, three active diplomatic officers and three retired public servants, who in the relevant period served in the Department for International Development Cooperation (YDAS) in the Department for Economic Control and the Court of Auditors at the Foreign ministry.
 
Among those involved is George Papandreou’s close associate and adviser, Alex Rondos, who as secretary general of YDAS reportedly signed so that the money would go to the specific NGO and a case file was formed against him for infidelity and false certification while currently he is in Africa as a representative consultant of the EU.
 
All involved are accused of offenses of fraud against the Greek State, by complicity and persistently, money laundering, false attestation and disbelief on the Service repeatedly, against the Greek State.