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Most likely the government will have to take some serious measures under the pressure of the collapsing economy. One of the scenarios the Greek government is working on is to cancel Easter and holiday bonuses. More specifically, according to Vima newspaper, following Ireland’s example, one of the measures relates to the cut of wages of workers – the 14^th salary and 2010 Easter and holiday bonuses.

According to one version, public-sector employees will be offered shares in state companies in exchange for trimmed bonuses. The government already knows that it has to tighten state expenses, in order to be able to convince Brussels and international markets that it has the situation under control. Also the government expects that this way the International Monetary Fund will now put Greece under strict supervision.

In connection to this PM Giorgios Papandreou needs to take the initiative and present the problem in its real dimensions in combination with specific measures. But the PM preferred not to announce the cut of the 14^th salary yesterday and limited his speech by saying that the main principals of the stabilization program will be announced in the upcoming days, before it is filed in the EU in January. The first presentation of this program will be on Monday in the conference center in Zapio, when the PM will announce the beginning of the public discussions.

“Unfortunately our home country is in an emergency state – we will either kill the national debt or it will kill us,” said Mr. Papandreou, who also blamed the previous New Democracy government that it has brought the country to a dead end street, which right not threatens national sovereignty. New Democracy leader Andonis Samaras, who is on an official visit in Bon threw the ball pack in PASOK’s court by saying that the government is postponing to make a decision and instead of blaming New Democracy for the deficit, it should better take some measures.

Later today Minister of Labor Andreas Loverdos announced that the 14^th salary is not threatened. He said that the President of the European Central Bank Jean-Claude Trichet said that he is certain that the government will take the necessary measures for the crisis. Today Luxemburg and Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Trichet excluded the possibility that Greece will bankrupt because of the high deficit