An uncomfortable comparison

The outcome of the Novartis scandal in the United States makes for some depressing comparisons with the progress of the case here in Greece.

In the US, the state will be getting millions of dollars from the Swiss pharmaceutical firm in penalties for its corrupt practices. Here, none of the real culprits have been brought to book yet and the case has sunk the political system into a mud-slinging mire.

Not only was the law left to fall by the wayside, but our institutions have been damaged and innocent people have been hung out to dry without a shred of incriminating evidence against them.

This is a fiasco that reflects on the integrity of the Greek state as a whole.