Shipping Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis submitted his resignation, stressing that “my political path and my personal dignity require me not to remain in the position.”
Varvitsiotis will be replaced by Christos Stylianidis.
He said that “the murder of Antonis Kariotis by members of the Blue Horizon crew has shocked us all. No one can imagine that Greek sailors, violating the age-old rules for the protection of human life at sea, pushed and abandoned an unfortunate young person in the murky waters of the port of Piraeus.”
“I spoke to Antonis’ family and conveyed our support for their pain. I promised them that Antonis will not be forgotten and that I will do everything possible to honor his memory by attributing justice to the extent that is my responsibility”.
Varvitsiotis pointed out that “in the last few days, however, I have become the target of an attack that is becoming more and more toxic. A statement of mine that was misinterpreted caused outrage. I immediately and sincerely apologized. In no way did I equate the victim with the perpetrators. In no way did I wash away the responsibilities that the ship-owning company has, which it still refuses to assume”.
It is reminded that a 36-year-old man lost his life at the Piraeus port on Tuesday after being pushed off the Blue Horizon ferry.
