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In recent days "high level" disputes are common at the meetings of the Greek government. This time, ministers could not agree on the issue about the establishment of a new office of finance prosecutor, although they had discussed the subject at an earlier meeting as well as in conversations among themselves.

"I need this person so that I can do my job", said Finance Minister George Papakonstantinou and incurred the attacks on his colleagues. The Minister of Citizen Protection Christos Papoutsis and his colleague from the Defence Ministry Evangelos Venizelos opposed the creation of the new institution. The first one, so as not to be responsible for the financial police, and the second one as a professor of constitutional law.

Christos Papoutsis said it is not possible in the bill to be preserved the paragraph saying "the financial prosecutor will guide and coordinate the financial police". "You are providing excessive power to the Office for prosecution of financial crimes. If this institution existed during the term of the previous government the parajudicial network wouldn’t have been revealed because the office would have been parastatal" said the Minister of Citizen Protection. With his opinion agreed also his predecessor Michalis Chrysohoidis, who added also that the police is conducting operations under complete secrecy and also asked how can a prosecutor has knowledge relating to financial crime.

Immediately after them the floor took the Minister of Defence Evangelos Venizelos, who noted that the proposal of the Minister of Finance for the economic prosecutor to be appointed by the prosecutor of the Supreme Court and to have at his command employees is unconstitutional.

"You are creating an uncontrollable and opaque over power" said the Minister-jurist who did not spare the definition of "a Frankenstein institution" about the economic prosecutor. With his opinion agreed the Minister of State Haris Pamboukis and the Justice Minister Haris Kastanidis, but in a far more moderate tone. "The fight against tax evasion may not exceed the limits of the constitution and the guarantees of the government of law", said the Defence Minister.

The Minister Finance George Papaconstantinou accepted the observations to which, however, he responded with an equally firm tone. "It is not possible to have so many cases that lie untouched for years and not to have one prosecutor to deal with them." The Minister agreed with the recommendation of Evangelos Venizelos and said that the prosecutor may have civil servents as assistants.

According to some publications in Greek press the Finance Minister was not only foolish enough to propose the creation of the institution but also the person to occupy this post.

The articles claimed that about a year ago, George Papakonstantinou had a meeting with a senior lawyer. During their conversation was born the idea of the establishment of an office to prosecute financial crimes by bringing together all existing institutions under a single leadership, in order for them to work quickly and efficiently. As a model and prototype for the institution were to serve the existing offices in Italy and the USA.

After their conversation the lawyer wrote an introductory report, and about two months ago he also prepared the draft law.

Finance Minister was determined to implement his idea, convinced that such an institution should not be headed by a political party. Therefore, he chose to appoint as a leader a prosecutor, whose job brings out its aims, namely investigating and prosecuting crimes.

Clearly, the Finance Minister had "stumbled" upon two major issues, comment on this the Greek media. One is related to the point-blank refusal of some participants in the political life on the creation of services with an effective action against corruption. The second problem is related to the chosen prosecutor who knows many things about many people.

Most Greek media describe the meeting of the Ministerial Council as a fight in which Deputy Defense Minister Panos Beglitis has assumed the role of peacemaker.

The issue was discussed at the background of publications both in the German and in the Greek press, according to which a Minister from previous governments of PASOK had received bribes from German companies for the purchase of submarines and military equipment.