Nikos Marantzidis: See you again Genay Migal!

In the consciousness of our people, the most beautiful battles are those that the hero undertakes to fight knowing in advance that he will lose them, but insists on fighting for his values, his world, ultimately for the generations to come. One of these battles with predetermined results took place on June 25th.

I had no doubt he had already cemented it when we first met on the seventh floor of the Komondoro on May 23, just two days after the landslide election result against him.

Maybe that’s why he hugged me so warmly when he saw me, jokingly asking what I was doing there now that everyone was leaving. And when I replied sarcastically that after him I met my psychiatrist to look at me, we both laughed out loud, with such intimacy as if we had known each other for years, we who met for the first time so close.

That day will remain deeply etched in me for the rest of my life, because of the weight of the moments and the harsh truths that were told. And that day, Alexis Tsipras climbed several steps into my consciousness. And when one day I write a book about the thirty days I lived (the reward Alexis Tsipras promised me for my participation in the effort), I will have the opportunity to be more explicit.

The campaign began with a harsh statement: “Whatever happens, I’m done.” It was fully understood by him that the most ideal scenario in this election for Syriza would be a repeat of the percentage of May, and if he wins even by one unit, we will open the champagne.

The abyss, however, was visible from where we were. The risk of SYRIZA collapsing and losing more than 5-6 points was recorded in the first post-election poll, where SYRIZA’s share seemed to be in the range of 14-15%.

The most feasible goal, then, was to sustain manageable losses. Let SYRIZA lose a few points from May, so that the party remains unchallenged by the official opposition, the main body of the progressive faction.

We jokingly call this strategy “Dunkirk”! For those who don’t mind, the Dunkirk evacuation was the evacuation of British troops, besieged by the Germans during World War II, from the beaches and port of Dunkirk in northern France in the year 1940. Like the British Army who were trapped in Dunkirk and were in danger of being annihilated or captured, and needed rescue and moved it to safer ground, so the bulk of Syriza’s electorate had to be spared so that the party could give future new election battles from this position an official opposition. From this point of view, Alexis Tsipras achieved something counterintuitive with the June elections.

Anyone who has seen Alexis Tsipras run this election campaign can feel fortunate to have seen a shocking effort in human terms. It was so shocking that it filled me with feelings of excitement, admiration, and anxiety all at the same time. Was the program too heavy? And were we asking him to exceed the limits of human endurance by going to two or three cities every day, and covering endless kilometers to meet and talk to citizens? And all this with an exhausted executive force, in an atmosphere of gloom and demoralization, with limited resources immeasurably smaller than the empire called ND.

However, Tsipras grumbled when his schedule wasn’t full. Don’t leave shout holes for the people who organize his tours. I was really worried. Was it really worth it, a few units up or down?

Was he really worth it? I often wondered about myself. In lost battles, such dark thoughts come to you. The only recipe is to move on and keep fighting. Alexis did this in a rare way, and it was a real pleasure to “fight” his lines, no matter how many scrapes I got.

If I felt something deeply all this time, it was that Tsipras loved and loved Syriza with all his being, like his own child. I would be exaggerating if I said that I don’t think anyone else would love Syriza as much as Alexis. If all of this is worth it, the last member and last voter of Syriza will know that Alexis gave it all in this fight. If all of this is worth it, no party member or friend feels Alexis has been abandoned or afraid. He faced his fate bravely, as only the brave know.

Like all charismatic leaders, Alexis Tsipras speaks to history through his instinct. His decision to withdraw from the party leadership was a sign of this instinct to understand his place in the current historical situation.

Since yesterday when he announced his resignation and in the following days, many farewells and political obituaries have been written and will be written for Alexis Tsipras. Whether friends or opponents, sincere or hypocritical, out of grief or joy, thousands of people are rushing to give their opinion on the leader Alexis Tsipras.

Just a tip: Do not be quick to put all their words into this farewell, At this political funeral, let’s leave some aside. Maybe – who knows – someday they will have to rewrite something similar for Alexis. Not everything is said now!

* Nikos Marantzidis is a professor of political science and was an unpaid collaborator of Alexis Tsipras in the June elections.