Greek Deputy Minister Makarios Lazaridis to Repay Salary Following Appointment Controversy

Makarios Lazaridis, Greece's Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Food and a New Democracy member of parliament for Kavala, issued a written statement on Thursday acknowledging an irregularity in his 2007 appointment as a special advisor at the Ministry of Education, apologizing for his recent public conduct, and requesting the full, interest-bearing reimbursement of any amounts unduly paid to him. The statement came amid a political controversy over the appointment, which occurred despite his university degree not having been recognized by the then-competent authority for degree recognition. Lazaridis maintained that the misclassification happened without any intervention or choice of his own. The statement was released shortly before a parliamentary debate on the rule of law, according to News 24/7. Lazaridis insisted he had nothing to fear but vowed not to allow what he described as an attempt to destroy his reputation and that of his family.

Degree recognition failure at the heart of the case The core of the controversy centers on Lazaridis's classification as a "special advisor" rather than a "special associate" at the Ministry of Education in 2007, a distinction that carries different educational requirements. His degree was not recognized by DIKATSA, the authority then responsible for evaluating foreign academic credentials, following an audit of documents he submitted to the competent service. Under applicable provisions, Lazaridis stated he could have been legally hired as a "special associate" on the basis of his high school diploma alone. The higher-ranking title of "special advisor" typically requires a recognized university degree. Lazaridis argued that the erroneous classification was an administrative decision made without his involvement. As evidence of proper procedure elsewhere, he pointed to his later posting at the Ministry of Administrative Reform, where he was correctly classified in the DE category, denoting a secondary education graduate, under then-Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who is now Prime Minister of Greece.

Lazaridis apologizes for tone, offers to repay funds with interest In the opening of his statement, Lazaridis offered an apology for the language he had used in the preceding days while defending himself publicly. „Initially, I feel the need to apologize because, in the need to defend myself, I expressed myself over the previous days, at certain moments, in a manner that is consistent neither with my character nor with the character of the faction to which I have belonged since I was a young child.” — Makarios Lazaridis via Kathimerini He then addressed the financial dimension of the affair directly, announcing that he himself was requesting the full reimbursement of any amounts unduly paid to him, with interest. „I have nothing to fear, but I will not allow anyone to 'assassinate' my character or smear my family.” — Makarios Lazaridis via SKAI The offer to repay the funds was characterized by News 24/7 as an indirect admission of an irregularity, even as Lazaridis denied personal responsibility for the misclassification. The statement also touched on his wife, Athanasia Kotsafti, with Lazaridis stating he had never concealed his political and family relationship with a person named Vaso Kollia, and that decisions regarding his wife's employment were made independently after his own departure from the General Secretariat.

Political backdrop: parliament debates rule of law the same morning The timing of the statement, issued minutes before a parliamentary debate on the rule of law, drew attention from Greek media outlets including News 24/7, which framed it as an attempt to limit political damage to the government and to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Lazaridis closed his statement with an expression of loyalty to the current government and its parliamentary group, praising Mitsotakis for correcting what he called long-standing pathologies in the Greek state. The affair illustrates a recurring tension in Greek public administration between politically appointed trust-based positions and the formal educational credentials required for different civil service classifications. Multiple Greek outlets, including Kathimerini, in.gr, SKAI, iefimerida, and NewsIT, published the full text of the statement on Thursday morning. No official government response to Lazaridis's statement had been reported by the time of publication.

Politically appointed "special advisors" and "special associates" in Greek ministries have long been a source of controversy, as such positions are filled at the discretion of individual ministers and depart when the minister leaves office. The distinction between the two titles carries salary and classification implications tied to the appointee's educational credentials. Degree recognition in Greece has historically been handled by successive bodies, with DIKATSA being the authority in operation during the period in question.