The Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Vassilis Kikilias, intervened earlier on ReaL FM and journalists Nikos Chatzinikolaou and Antonis Dellatolas, regarding the Disciplinary Investigation (EDE) of the Harbor Master of Chania after the assault on an elderly man on a ship:
“An elderly man was punched on a ship in the port of Chania. He could have been fatally injured. A lawsuit was filed by the victim. No one can ask us to pretend that nothing happened ‘for reasons of humanity’.
Humanity is not an alibi for a cover-up. An EDE was ordered, which is an institutional process, not a punishment. It is the only way to prove whether there was negligence or not, it is provided for by law. It constitutes a duty and obviously not arrogance. Arrogance would be the opposite. To not investigate the incident reported by a fellow citizen, because it concerns state employees. I fail to understand the logic of accepting beatings as simply a common occurrence. That is the law of the jungle.
We have a state of law, not a coffee shop of friends and acquaintances. Especially for the Harbor Master of Chania, it is customary in the process of an EDE for the person under investigation not to remain in the position of responsibility, so as not to obstruct the investigation.”
