2024-02-18 19:12:43
Economist Stefanos Tzimogiannis, president of the Epirus Chamber of Commerce in the period 1992-2004 and secretary general of the Central Administration of the Hellenic Chamber of Commerce in the period 2004- 2010.
Initially, Mr. Tzimogiannis refers to the role of the Economic Chamber as an official advisor to the State in economic matters, as it grants him the right to intervene, to highlight problems and propose reliable solutions with scientific documentation, as well as to express and serve Greek economists , their scientific interests and their sectoral interests.
“The Chamber of Commerce must be a living cell of society, be extroverted, interventionist and assertive. Especially today when the country is going through a difficult economic period, it is an excellent opportunity for a dynamic presence in the economic development”, emphasizes Mr. Tzimogiannis, adding that it was in this context and philosophy that it worked, when PASK-O (now PDSO) had the responsibility of the administration and made it a real spokesperson on economic, development and social issues in times of intense economic activity.
“He was closely tied to the economic and social problems of our region and participated in all processes and stages of development. He activated all those necessary forces that are necessary for the upgrading of Epirus, both within the framework of the European Union and within the framework of the Balkans. It developed transnational collaborations, with the transfer of specialized knowledge and information, key factors that support modern development and production processes. Collaborations with Erasmus, University of Rotterdam, with the Chamber of Milan, with EU administrations. Synergies with the Chambers of Epirus, with T.A. etc. He took advantage of European programs, such as HORIZON, and set up the first Drug Prevention Center in Ioannina, today’s “Shedia” Prevention Center, proving in practice the social dimension of his role. He submitted documented scientific proposals for the development of Epirus, holding international level conferences for Lake Pamvotida, for the non-creation of a casino in Ioannina, when such an issue was raised, for the utilization of the then “Xenia”, etc. And all this was achieved because the factions cooperated, respected each other, as well as the will of the economists, without exclusions, away from party interventions”, he points out, attributing these achievements to the fact that PASK-O, despite its absolute dominance in the field of economists, whose electoral percentages reached 50%, it was a fixed principle that the presidium of the local administration should be representative, proportional, without exclusions.
Something that did not happen after the elections of last December, when PDSO (formerly PASK-O) took first place with a percentage of 44% and 3 seats, second was DIKIO with 33% and 3 seats and third was POFEE with 7% and 1 headquarters.
“With these results, the economists of Epirus trusted the PDSO to assume the responsibility of the Administration of the O.E., at the same time condemning the factions DIKIO and its crutch POFEE, who ruled for the last seven years and led the O.E. Epirus to the non-existence and degradation of the institution. Nevertheless, in the formation of the board, DIKIO and POFEE cooperated and took over the administration of the OE again, ignoring the verdict of their colleagues, excluding PDSO, which insisted on a representative, proportional and stable board”, emphasizes St. . Tsimogiannis and concludes: “They proved, once again, that their goal is not to get the Chamber out of the quagmire and disrepute, but to distribute the chairs of the bureau. Unfortunately, these two factions did not learn anything from the recent past, which the O.E. Epirou was established in the consciousness of colleagues, society and the state, fulfilling its institutional role, when factions respect the will and vote of economists, cooperate without exclusions and when they leave behind partisanship and opportunism”.