As Greece continues to fall deeper into an abyss of financial debt, the government's controversial three-year Stability and Growth Programme, designed to bring the country back on economic track, is not restoring the faith of most residents of northeastern Crete.

According to a random survey by The Khronicles, the programme is seen a case of being "too little, too late."

"I do not believe that the Stability Program will work within the three-year period," said Yiorgos Aretakis of Gouves. "For that to happen, public spending must decrease as well as the National Defence expenditures."

Mr. Aretakis, a civil servant himself, went on to say that the number of civil servants must decrease and become proportionate to the number of other European countries.

"Moreover, greater tax control and a more efficient way of collecting taxes is warranted, and basically an incentive is needed to attract foreign investors to our country so that new employment opportunities will be created," he said. "In my opinion, this program needs five to ten years to work."

Another opinion was stated by Win Peters of Kokkini Hani, who declared: "I think this economic crisis will be with us for at least five more years. There is still too much corruption and the country's main income, tourism, is at an all-time low level, with high prices and low service."

On the positive side, Mrs Marina Papoutsaki, an accountant in Stalida, said: "I'm optimistic about the Stability Program the new government has undertaken to ensure the future economic growth."

She said it's possible to be achieved in the three-year period providing there is a wage-freeze on the civil servants' salaries in dealing with this dangerously large deficit.

"I suppose that in the future the rate of unemployment will decrease at two to three percent with the creation and development of new employment possibilities," she added. "In my opinion it is highly unlikely as well as very difficult for Greece to find itself outside the EU because the country constitutes a key to European countries with regard to tourism, agriculture etc."

 
Last month, when Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou presented the programme to both Eurogroup, made up of the finance ministers of the member states who have adopted the euro as their official currency, and ECOFIN, the EU's Economic and Financial Affairs Council, it was met with some skepticism.

At ECOFIN, while the methodology of gathering up and using the Greek statistics is being closely examined, members have voiced as many reservations.

Some members expressed fears that Greece's financial situation is so severe, it would destabilize the euro currency. In fact, in recent weeks the euro did lose strength against other currencies, especially the U.S. dollar.

However, the Prime Minister of Spain, chairing the European Union, voiced his support of the programme, saying: " the EU will stand by Greece and will support its efforts to tackle its fiscal problems…the Greek government has presented a reliable program for its budgetary cleansing."

The programme, which is expected to be approved this month, highlights the government's will to promote major changes in public finances, in taxation, budget drafting and all the radical reforms promoted in the public sector and the economy's production model.

It also includes an alternative plan, with still harder measures, in the event that the country's income does not meet the expectations. Like hefty cut backs of as much as 30 percent or 40 percent on civil servants that receive more than one allowances, an increase of the special consumption tax and perhaps will re-examine the possibility of a change in VAT.