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Fruity Greek MP who wants Papandreou to quit says 'I haven't slept for days. This is the point of no return.'
The stage was set for the final act. Crowds gathered outside the seat of power, waiting, after a series of epic plot twists, for the embattled leader to fall on his sword.
Except George Papandreou, the Greek prime minister, appeared not to have read the script. Confounding all expectations, the protagonist in this most gripping of Greek dramas was last night still clinging to power, defying both critics inside his government and the opposition who had demanded his resignation.
Instead, he yesterday went to President Carolos Papoulias to ask for permission to form a coalition government, and begin uniting his fractious politicians, reassuring euro leaders, and securing Greece's economic lifeline.
He is in for a rough ride. Even those who were supportive a week ago are now calling for his head.
"He has to step down," said Eva Kaili, an MP from Mr Papandreou's PASOK party, before the vote on his future in the early hours of Saturday.
Like many MPs, she said the past few days had been "the most difficult" of her political career. "It's been huge tension. And everybody's been trying to figure out what's going on," she said.
"A lot of confusion, and a huge sense of responsibility. Exhaustion I haven't slept for days." Miss Kaili, 33, was one of the politicians who forced Mr Papandreou into trying to form the coalition government, by announcing that she could no longer support him and making PASOK's enfeebled political majority barely tenable. "The political system has reached the point of no return. It's not working," she said. But, like many Greeks, she blames the EU for allowing their government to get so badly into debt.
"If you lend money to somebody you have to make sure the money is going to the right place, she said.
"I really think it's not fair for Greece. Greece has done a lot for Europe it's a big market. We have a lot of culture, tourism. Greece was always there when you needed us. And we're not the only ones, so it's not right we are pushed into a corner."
While opposition MPs are no more amenable to the bail-out than Mr Papandreou's party, the hope is that a coalition will gain sufficient legitimacy with the public, two thirds of whom disagree with the deal.
"Now, we have to find the strength to step back and find a new government of cooperation, and stabilise the situation, to get us out of this new crisis," Miss Kaili said. "And we need to reassure people that we are staying in the eurozone. Things are changing every hour, it's like a political thriller."
Many fear that reassurance, stability and cooperation will be in short supply in the coming weeks, and last night there were predictions that Mr Papandreou could yet throw in the towel.
"The mask has fallen," said Antonis Samaras, leader of the opposition New Democracy party, who insisted again on Saturday that he would only participate in a coalition if Mr Papandreou resigned.
"Papandreou has rejected our proposals and he must take responsibility for that. Elections are now the only answer."
That the coming days and weeks could provide yet more unscripted scenes was greeted with grim resignation across Europe. For hanging in the balance this weekend is not just Mr Papandreou's own political survival but the future of Greece's economy, and that of the whole eurozone.
The nightmare scenario for Europe is that the Greek contagion could spread to other struggling economies, in particular Italy.
Last week Mr Papandreou began by provoking fury among EU chiefs by unexpectedly announcing a referendum on the bail-out.
"I think his intentions were good but the timing was bad," said Miss Kaili.
"Greeks are so angry that they wouldn't have voted for Europe. They'd have just voted No to him."
In the days that followed, the G20 summit in Cannes was almost a sideshow to the Greek tragedy unfolding within the Athens parliament, where Mr Papandreou had to explain himself to his party. Chain-smoking MPs stood transfixed by the television screens beaming live from the debating chamber.
Waiters carried trays of whisky and cola among the crowds of the parliamentary bar. One PASOK insider muttered: "Papandreou made a huge mistake in calling that referendum, and he will pay for it."
Mr Papandreou did pay for it - backtracking on his idea for a referendum, and being cornered into agreeing to form a unity government, which would govern until the seventh tranche of EU bail-out funds was received in February, and then call elections.
A vote of confidence in the early hours of Saturday gave Mr Papandreou the approval for his plan. His dogged determination to hang on is, he says, down to his duty to serve his country. He comes from Greece's most prominent political dynasty his grandfather George was three times prime minister, while his maverick father Andreas founded PASOK four decades ago.
even so, many still think Mr Papandreou will be forced to hand over to Evangelos Venizelos, his finance minister.
Meanwhile, Petros Doukas, the former deputy finance minister, was watching Mr Papandreou's manoeuvres closely. He accused him of "playing heroic to the Greek people" by calling the referendum.
He added: "This economic mismanagement has been so great that our ancestors would be turning in their graves."
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Greek MP who wants Papandreou to quit says 'I haven't slept for days. This is the point of no return.' - Telegraph
I know plenty of people who'd be happy to lend her a bed.
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