“In the past few days we have been confronted with a lie from some opposition parties that we are cooking something.”
“The Ministry of Justice had to send to Parliament, without exception, the total of the Supreme Judges who qualified to be drawn as regular and alternate members of the Judicial Council” to examine the Triantopoulos case. This was emphasized by the Minister of Justice George Floridisin response to related criticism of opposition parties, in the context of the second reading of the bill discussed in the Committee on Public Administration, Public Order and Justice of the House.
Mr Floridis rejected the “cooks” to the lists sent by the Ministry of Justice with the prospective supreme judges, wondering: “How could it be possible to cook anything when the names of the Supreme Court or the CoE are known and published and there is no citizen who does not know them.”
The minister said that “the only jurisdiction of the Minister of Justice is to send all the lists. In these lists, next to each name he had the time of the retirement of each judge, so that the House that will make the draw knows whether a judge should be put into the draw or not. They are about 20 judges out of the Around 86 of the Supreme Court who retire on June 31 due to age limit. But the Minister of Justice had no right to exclude him, whoever he thinks he should be excluded. The only jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice is to send the complete list of all the notes next to each name. “
Mr Floridis in his dignity made it clear that “and the House, however, could not exclude anyone. The House makes the draw. The only body that is the only one responsible for deciding, either on its own or by applications by the legitimate interest in requests of exceptions, is the Judicial Council. Therefore, this process (ref. Of the draw) has been completed under the Constitution and the law and I hope there are no longer disputes about the way the process has evolved. “
To the question of whether he will call for the exemption of the Attorney General of the Supreme Court Georgia Authoritarian “who was drawn to perform the duties of the prosecutor of the Judicial Council” raised by the new lecturer Dimitris Tzanakopoulos, the Minister replied that the Minister replied that “He cannot request the exemption of the Parliament. Alas in democracy, if the Minister of Justice had such a possibility. Imagine the Minister could ask for the exemption of judges? And fortunately, that cannot be done. ” He underlined that “the proceedings of the exemptions of judges can be done by the Council of Judges of the Supreme Court and the CoE. By no one else. And whoever wants, there should be addressed there, that is, to the Council. “
Mr Floridis said that “in the previous days we have been confronted with a lie from some opposition parties that we are cooking something, as some live with lies. It turned out that the Ministry of Justice had sent all the serving judges and prosecutors to the Supreme Court. No other can be done. If we were sending a deficit list, then it would be immediately perceived, as the names of the judges are publicized. “
The minister added that “the draw of the members of the Judicial Council is a process of Parliament. The ministry had only one responsibility to send the list. He sent him with complete composition. And the House did the process and in a very transparent way those who were drawn were drawn. “
Parliament Speaker Nikitas Kaklamanis, talking to parliamentary authors on the issue of “exemptions” judges from the draw, said that “neither the House nor Mr Floridis can exclude someone from the draw”, adding that “only the judiciary can”. The only case that the House could cancel the appointment of a judge who was drawn, and at this time of the draw, is whether two spouses had been drawn.
Concerning the Supreme Court’s prosecutor Georgia Adelini, who was drawn as a Judicial Council prosecutor, and the term of office expires June 30, Mr Kaklamanis said she could request her exemption for this reason by the Judicial Council. The House, however, yesterday summoned Mr Anastasios Skara as her deputy. If Mrs Adeline, therefore, requests her exemption and the Council decides it, then the tasks of the regular prosecutor in the Judicial Council will be exercised by Mr Skaras. The same replenishment by the alternates drawn is provided in cases where regular members drawn in the Council request exception and are accepted. With the data so far, however, the Speaker of the House pointed out, it does not appear to be a necessity for a new draw.
The issue, however, is expected to be at the center of the plenary session tomorrow where it is introduced for discussion and adoption of the draft law of the Ministry of Justice “Interventions in the Legislative Framework of the National School of Judicial Officers, the Code of Court of Justice and the status of judicial officers and the Code of Courts of Justice and the Code of Judicial Officers”.