GNTO Report Sent To Athens Prosecutor

“The case should be sent to Parliament if the prosecutor’s probe ends up apportioning blame to politicians,” Deputy Culture and Tourism Minister Yiorgos Nikitiadis said in late July in regards to an investigative report on the Greek National Tourism Organization’s tourism promotion campaigns in 2008 and 2009.

The report was commissioned by Culture and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos and carried out by state public administration officials.

According to the report, mismanagement and a number of illegal acts increased costs for the GNTO during the 2008-2009 period. During that period the GNTO allegedly exceeded the approved budget for advertising to promote Greek tourism by 76.4 million euros.

State public administration officials submitted the report to the Culture and Tourism Ministry. It was then forwarded to an Athens appeals prosecu­tor so the Court of Audit would investigate the matter.

The public administration officials found that during the 2008-2009 period no overall approved advertising program or targets existed, while decisions were taken informally.

On their part, former tourism ministers Aris Spiliotopoulos and Kostas Markopoulos, through announcements, rejected any wrongdoings or money wasting in regards to the GNTO’s tourism promotion campaigns of 2008 and 2009.