Deputy Transport Minister Konstantinos Kyranakis awarded at least three projects in eight months, via direct awards, to Cypriot businessman Andreas Georgiou—one of six individuals implicated in a case involving the alleged embezzlement of EU and public funds connected to GSEE president Giannis Panagopoulos, according to a report by the newspaper Avgi.
The awards concern:
- the creation of the railway.gov.gr platform and the train geolocation system “HEPOS”,
- the OASA complaints submission system report.oasa.gr (even though such a platform already exists), and
- the creation of a complaints platform for Thessaloniki public transport.
The report adds that the new HEPOS system was presented as a major personal innovation, while an earlier report by the newspaper indicates that remarks by the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) about HEPOS were ignored—since no EU country uses satellite systems and GPS as a railway safety measure.
Six individuals—including Giannis Panagopoulos and Andreas Georgiou—are under scrutiny by the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering, for their alleged involvement in a case of misappropriation of funds from financing by the Greek state and the European Union.
Also under scrutiny are six companies (one of them ALPHA ΩΜΕΓΑ ZED, linked to Georgiou), which operate, among other areas, in communications, advertising, and publishing.
As the revelations unfolded, Anna Stratinaki, Georgiou’s spouse, submitted her resignation from her post as deputy head of the Independent Authority for Market Control, in the area of the Consumer Ombudsman.
Sources: Avgi; Kathimerini
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