Greek Gov't Prepares Reform Aimed at 'Eliminating Clientelist Relations'

Greece's government has prepared legislation reforming the Greek state apparatus, a Ministerial Council source said Thursday.

ATHENS (Sputnik) — The administrative reform, demanded by Greece's international creditors, was promised by the ruling Syriza party in its 2015 election campaign. The reform bill is set to be put to a vote in the Greek parliament shortly.

"The initiative is directed at eliminating the pathological situation of clientelist relations, which have dominated the government sector for decades because of the parties of the traditional two-party system," the source told reports.

The reform entails a new approach to selecting personnel for top administrative posts involving a national register, according to the government source. Two other key aspects include introducing a new administrative staff certification scheme and additional selection criteria for top of official qualifications, the source added.

The measures are set to raise efficiency and productivity, and promote meritocracy and help steer away from party affiliation influencing the selection process. The move comes in contrast to the previous New Democracy and PASOK governments' policies, the Ministerial Council source said, stressing that the old certification process had been used for mass layoffs and intimidation.