Dorita Yiannakou
Members of the press enjoy certain privileges. At the same time, they bear real responsibilities. They are expected to act with objectivity and to keep the public informed on current affairs. Sometimes this job is difficult; sometimes, it’s more straightforward.
For example, journalists will inevitably encounter public officials who hold high-ranking positions and are well-versed in the issues that fall under their jurisdiction. At the same time, they will come across others in equally high positions who are not nearly as informed as they ought to be, given the role they hold. These officials often shy away from speaking out, fearing they might say something wrong and end up embarrassing themselves. This kind of behavior seriously undermines the work of journalists for two main reasons.
First, when a journalist, who is, let’s not forget, simply doing their job and asking questions in good faith, seeks information to relay to the public and is met with a skittish official who’s afraid of their own shadow, then the process of informing the public becomes needlessly difficult. Second, there’s the risk that an uninformed official might offer answers anyway, and in doing so, mislead the public with inaccurate or outright wrong information.
In any case, it goes without saying: if a public official, especially a Ministry Director, is approached by a journalist, the very least they can do is respond. They are within their rights not to provide information, or to say they don’t have time right now but will follow up, or even to express frustration with a question they find irrelevant or off-base. What is utterly indefensible, however, is for a journalist to be flat-out ignored. Repeatedly.
And to speak plainly: how acceptable is it for the Director General of one of the most important Ministries in the country to ignore and outright refuse to engage with journalists who are simply trying to do their job, asking questions in an effort to inform the public on a matter of pressing relevance?
Let’s be even more specific. We’re talking about the Ministry of Finance and Director General Andreas Zachariadis, who was appointed to the post in November 2024 when the President of the Republic moved him from the Ministry’s Directorate-General for Development. The problem isn’t just that Mr. Zachariadis routinely ignores the press. It’s that he hasn’t delegated communication responsibilities to any other official either, and, in fact, they’ve been instructed to redirect journalists to him alone, as if he’s always available and eager to engage!
To be fair, there are some truly excellent civil servants at the Ministry. Not only do they take journalists’ calls, but they also offer guidance and clarification on the matters they oversee. And Mr. Zachariadis would do well to remember that his predecessor, Giorgos Pantelís, not only spoke with journalists regularly on issues within his remit but was also deeply knowledgeable about the Ministry’s affairs. Not that this implies Mr. Zachariadis isn’t.
Still, when you pointedly ignore the press, the message you send is either that you don’t know your stuff or that you consider yourself above speaking to journalists. And this isn’t just a Mr. Zachariadis issue. This is a tactic used by other Directors General across ministries, who conveniently shift all communication duties onto the Ministers themselves. But each has their own distinct responsibilities, Directors General and Ministers alike, and the public will judge them separately.
After all, it’s the citizens who assess the effectiveness, transparency, and integrity of those who serve in public roles, whether elected politicians or senior administrators. Public trust is not a given. And as much as some may dismiss it, journalists do play a part in shaping that trust. They matter. Their voice matters.
*This article was translated from its Greek original.
