ATHENS – He had let the Chinese company COSCO acquire a bigger stake in running the port of Piraeus while in power, but now major opposition SYRIZA leader and former premier Alexis Tsipras said it's New Democracy who's trying to benefit private businesses.

While he had reversed virtually all his promises and agreed to privatization while Greece's leader – and then tried to stymie foreign investors too – Tsipras said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is using the COVID-19 pandemic as a cover to help businesses.

Tsipras told Sto Nissi radio while visiting the eastern Aegean island of Lesbos that new legislation on bankruptcy was “a very important gift to the banks’” and the recent labor law “a very important gift to large employers, especially the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV).”

He didn't mention that after swearing “Not one home in the hands of banks” after he imposed more austerity measures after saying he wouldn't that he let banks foreclose on homes or that he worked with banks and big employers.

“We also have the social security legislation, which is a gift to large funds that will come to gamble the money of Greek employees and the insured for profits,” he said without explaining what he meant.

He also said requiring students to pass university entrance exams – SYRIZA doesn't want any standards to get into colleges or stay there – was  “a gift to the owners of private colleges,” that Greece doesn't allow, the only European Union country not to recognize diplomas from private schools to get state jobs.