The results of the citizen evaluation in the local government arm ring a bell for most municipal authorities, and few mayors will be able to look their citizens in the eye.

The findings of the first in the history of public administration poll, presented recently at Maximou by Interior Minister Thodoris Livanios, in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, show that citizens are not satisfied with the infrastructure and services of municipalities related to their daily lives.

In the overall rating, 17 services were rated below the base, while satisfaction was expressed only for the KEP, the “Help at Home” program, and the KAPI/Friendship Clubs.

The most problematic elements are identified in the conditioning of pavements (and by extension, infrastructure for the disabled) and roads (the problem is attributed to gas, sewerage, and fibre-optic projects), parking spaces in major urban centres, building services, and the management of stray animals. Compared to the average of the other services, relatively better scores are obtained by cleaning and electric lighting.

The Central Union of Greek Municipalities (KEDE), commenting on the findings of the online survey, notes that the response 65.000 citizens is useful, but this procedure is not suitable for drawing objective conclusions, as the basic principles of scientific research, such as weighted sampling, were not observed, which does not allow drawing valid and generalizable conclusions.

The collective body of mayors reiterates its demand for reform in the relationship between the state and local government and assures that “when a clear institutional framework is established, without overlapping responsibilities and competences, when the required financial resources to which local government is entitled are secured, when the necessary personnel are allocated and when the participation of local government in the country’s development planning acquires an institutional character, then the picture will change immediately”.

However, a positive image already has the survey participants, residents of three neighboring municipalities of the southern suburbs, namely Glyfada, Alimos, and Eliniko – Argyroupolis, with which the municipalities of Kalamata, Kastoria and Meteora are equal in third place in the evaluation index, followed by the municipality of Argus Orestiko. These are the only ones out of a total of 184 municipalities with a sufficient sample of responses that passed the base.

“It is a great honor and an even greater responsibility to continue. We are making an effort, and this evaluation commits us to do more in the future because we know that we have weaknesses and we have to make even greater interventions.” Mayor of Glyfada George Papanikolaou told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency.

With their answers, 863 residents of Glyfada gave their city an overall grade of 5.4 with a perfect score of 10, and in the individual areas, the best rating nationwide in digital services, the road network, social services, KAPHs, green spaces, playgrounds, and stray animal management. The second-best rating was given to electric lighting, kindergartens, and municipal clinics.

The municipality of Kastoria received the best rating for cleanliness, Alimos for electric lighting, Argos Orestiko for Help at Home, schools, kindergartens and KEPs (but only 58 residents responded), Tirnavos for parking lots and municipal clinics (51 participants) and Kozani for recycling, in building services, Killer (51 participants), in public transport, the municipality of Elliniko – Argyroupoli, in pavements, Kalamata, in infrastructure for the disabled, Komotini and in municipal police, the municipality of Ierapetra.

Below the base are also the 10 largest municipalities of the country, with Peristeri and Larissa being “rescued” with an overall grade of 4.7. The services of the municipality of Athenaion received an average of 4.962 residents per 3.4, Thessaloniki 3.6, Patras 3.3, Heraklio,n Crete 2.5, placing it in the penultimate position, Piraeus 3,8, Volos with 4,4, Rhodes with 2,8 and the municipality of Ioannitis with 3,5.

Why do citizens treat the services provided by the institution closest to them so harshly? Konstantinos Allagiannis, mayor of Markopoulou, which, with a 2.8 rating, received the lowest rating among Attica’s municipalities, told AP-MPE that the memoranda left a deep imprint on local government, which found itself managing very big problems with fewer staff and less money. “Unfortunately,” he added, “we are forced to spend a lot of our time claiming resources and capabilities from the central administration, when all over Europe these are a given. We continue to try, on the one hand, to use every opportunity we have and, on the other hand, to fight battles with the central administration for the rights of our citizens.”