“Kalikratis” plan provides for an administrative reform equal to the “unknown until now structural change” according to the words of minister of interior Yiannis Ragousis. The bill is officially uploaded on the internet page of the government and awaits for the comments of the citizens (www.ypes.gr).
According to it the municipal governments will be dismissed and incorporated into 13 new periphery governments, which will match the geographical borders of the 13 administrative peripheries. Also the number of town halls will decrease from 1034 to 370 and the Centers for servicing the citizens will be modernized and for this purpose all the possibilities that the new technologies are offering will be used. It is also suggested the peripheries Attica and Thessalonica in addition to their normal functions to act also as metropolis, which was welcomed with some reactions from the side of ministers and local governors.
Through this structural change of the peripheral self-government bodies take the responsibilities to united their strategies for the development of the outskirts and take care of governing the funds on the Peripheral program for development which depends on the participation of the citizens. A leader of the peripheral self-government body will be peripheral governor who along with the Peripheral council is elected in direct elections by citizens. For the election of the peripheral governors and the mayors the margin of 42% is rising to 50%+1 and for the allocation of the seats will remain as it now.
Among the rest of the governing bodies of the peripheries is the Executive committee, the Peripheral council and the Council for discussing the matters concerning the periphery, in which take part all the mayors and representatives of the civil society and nongovernmental organizations. Parallel to this a “Peripheral Ombudsman” for the citizens and organizations is also created.
According to the “Kalikratis” plan the Centers for servicing citizens will be modernized and small centers will be created in each village or neighborhood depending on the needs of the people. A “smart” “citizens’ card” will be introduced using which all the town halls could automatically service the citizens and issue them certificates for example. The card could also be used by its owner during the local elections. In front of the town halls machines for servicing citizens that would be working 24 hours would be placed.
The bill of the government faced the reactions of the opposing party as well as ministers from the government. “The plan creates concentrated, national, local mechanisms that release the responsibility of the state on the subjects of education, health care, infrastructure and social services”, said the leader of the communist party Aleka Papariga. Some of the ministers of the government criticized the wording about the role of the peripheral governor of Attica region as he will turn into a local Prime minister for 4 million voters. Vice president of the Greek government Theodoros Pangalos suggested as a solution Attica to be subdivided into at least three peripheries. In their critiques the ministers raised the subject about the price of these changes. On the other side the representatives of the local self-governing bodies are waiting and avoid taking sides or discussing the matters on securing the funds for the correct functioning of the new town halls.
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