Greece: Mitsotakis aide steps aside amid questions over his degree
Michalis Bekiris has left his post as head of the prime minister’s parliamentary office. He rejects the allegations and plans to sue his critics.
Symbolic image · Photo: A.Savin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and resized)
Michalis Bekiris, head of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ parliamentary office and coordinator of his office in Thessaloniki, has stepped down. According to the Greek newspaper Proto Thema, he had been at the center of media reports and opposition criticism over whether he holds a recognized university degree and whether his appointment was published in the Government Gazette.
Before a regional tour with the prime minister, Bekiris met Mitsotakis at the Maximos Mansion. In a statement, he called his decision “exclusively personal” and said it was neither a retreat nor an admission of the allegations. He described the reports about him as an “unprecedented campaign of personal targeting” and said he would take legal action.
His departure surprised government officials who had spent days answering questions about the case, the newspaper reported. Bekiris and Mitsotakis entered parliament together in 2004 and have worked closely for years.