Former prime minister and independent deputy Antonis Samaras said on Friday in Parliament that he would abstain from a later vote on a motion of censure against the government filed by opposition parties.

While speaking during the plenary debate on Friday, Samaras said "I will abstain from today's vote on the motion of censure, issuing an agonized warning for our political system that is constantly losing its legal standing in the conscience of the Greek people."

Samaras added, "Look at polls and you do not need to look at anything else. And look at what is happening in here. It cannot be that everything in the world around us is being swept away, and us here be arguing about who is harming the country more since nobody is concerned meanwhile with the new threats or with new opportunities." 

The motion of censure against the government was filed on Wednesday, and the debate will conclude with party leaders' speeches before proceeding to a roll-call vote on Friday night.