PRESIDENT NICOS Anastasiades yesterday vowed to be unrelenting against acts of corruption and bad governance and called on his newly formed cabinet to abide by a code of conduct which would make them accountable to the people.

In his first cabinet meeting, the new president called on his ministers to act “with courage, resolve, consistency” and sign a code of conduct, to be published, which would render them responsible and accountable to the people on a daily basis.

“The rule of accountability is now the new face of political life,” said Anastasiades, who expressed determination “to bring back hope, to restore the dignity and pride of the people”.
Addressing the council of ministers, the president stressed that he would be “unrelenting” towards any sign of corruption. In a sign of intent, Anastasiades asked his ministers to inform him within three months on how they plan to implement the observations made in the last report of the state’s Auditor-general Chrystalla
Georghadji, who has repeatedly flagged serious discrepancies and wastefulness in her annual report on state and semi-state services.
He warned his cabinet that there will be an audit in each ministry to ensure compliance and corrections of mistakes or omissions highlighted by the auditor-general.
The new president acknowledged that the government was taking over at a most critical time for the country.
“We are taking on a difficult task, which is the mandate of the people,” he said, adding that it was time to “finally enter a new era characterised by transparency, good governance, impartiality, combating corruption, restoring the validity of the institutions, and combating any phenomenon of discrimination against any citizen”.
He called for “hard work” and collective consultation from the new members of the cabinet.
Speaking earlier during the swearing in ceremony at the Presidential Palace, Anastasiades said: “The people expect much from us. Hard work is needed. There is no doubt that together, with collective consultation with the political forces and the parliament, we can manage to implement everything we have declared and pledged to the people.”
On behalf of the new cabinet, new Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides pointed out the need for a high sense of responsibility, and zero tolerance of mismanagement.
“The ministerial post should not be considered as a privilege but a call for service,” he said. “Hard work, diligence and creativity await us.”
He referred to the pay cut of 25 per cent that Anastasiades has decided for himself. “We willingly follow with the reductions you have already announced,” he said.
Outside during a wreath-laying ceremony at the statue of Cyprus’ first president, Archbishop Makarios III, Anastasiades announced that the emblem of the Republic of Cyprus would be placed above the British escutcheon which still adorns the entrance to the palace from British colonial times.
Throughout the remainder of the day, the outgoing cabinet ministers of the Demetris Christofias administration handed over the reins to their successors.
During the handover ceremony at the foreign ministry, Kasoulides said he would do his utmost to restore Cyprus’ reputation abroad, noting that in the past few months, Cyprus has been “unfairly defamed”.
Kasoulides stressed that redefining Cyprus’ foreign policy means giving the message that Cyprus would be a consistent and reliable EU partner.
The application for membership to NATO’s anteroom, Partnership for Peace, would send the message that Cyprus ceases to be different from its 26 EU partners, he added.
Cyprus’ energy prospects would also help give the message to Europe that Cyprus could offer “added value” to the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.
Speaking at his handover, new Commerce Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis, who will be tasked with handling Cyprus’ burgeoning natural gas industry, said he agreed with his predecessor Neoclis Sylikiotis that the ministry “may constitute the economy’s locomotive”.

“I personally believe that it can be at the forefront of the effort for economic recovery,” said Lakkotrypis.
He called on all officials and staff to collectively work harder: “We are not allowed to work as if conditions were normal,” he said, adding that now was the moment to go above and beyond the call of duty.
For his part Sylikiotis wished his successor every success, warning him that the ministry is not an easy one.
“You are assuming the duties of a multifaceted ministry of key significance at a crucial point in the history of Cyprus”, said Sylikiotis, adding that everyone’s hopes for a better tomorrow in Cyprus are based on this ministry.
Labour Minister Haris Georgiades said yesterday that combating unemployment would be the new government’s top goal. He noted, however, that there are no easy solutions and that it will take time and effort to exit the crisis.
“Unemployment constitutes the most painful consequence of the economic crisis we are facing and dealing with it is certainly a top goal of the new government,” he said.
New Health Minister Petros Petrides announced the establishment of a Public Health Council which would assist the government in implementing its plans in the health sector.
Petrides, who is a surgeon and has served as director of the vascular surgery clinic of the Nicosia General Hospital, said he would focus on patients and the quality of service to citizens.
New Interior Minister Socrates Hasikos said his ministry would work to combat bureaucracy and help boost growth.
“We should jointly combat bureaucracy which prevents growth, for the sake of our country and the thousands of unemployed,” he said.
Education Minister Kyriacos Kenevezos called for an ‘educational alliance’ between the ministry, educators, children and parents “in order to achieve our goals because failure is not an option”.
Referrring to educational reforms already enacted, outgoing minister Giorgos Demosthenous said there was no going back.
“I will strive to complete the educational reform,” Kenevezos replied.
Defence Minister Fotis Fotiou said the pillars of his policy aim at protecting Cyprus’ sovereign rights in its Exclusive Economic Zone, by establishing new military partnerships and enhancing military diplomacy.
“All we want is peace,” he said. Fotiou added that by upgrading the National Guard he also seeks to restore the public’s sense of security.
Agriculture Minister Nicos Kouyialis said his ministry’s top priority will be a new national strategy for the development of the agricultural economy.
“We should realise that we are entering a new era which demands productivity, professionalism, expertise and constant action,” he said.
And finally, the new government spokesman Christos Stylianides assumed his duties as Anastasiades’ right-hand man with a pledge to act collectively, with consensus and reason, saying these three values will underline all the government’s efforts both locally and internationally.
Commenting on the president’s decision to make all ministers sign a code of conduct, Stylianides said the relation between citizens and politics has been tarnished in Cyprus and needs to be set right.

New Cabinet and presidential office members assemble on the steps of the presidential palace after being sworn in (Christos Theodorides)

YOUTH unemployment is undoubtedly one of the greatest consequences of the economic crisis, and nowhere more so than for the hundreds of young people finishing their university degrees yet unable to find jobs.
With the crisis challenging people to reassess their priorities and change their mentalities, a youth foundation set up in 2007 aspires to help young people explore their potential.
IEEN, the Youth Employment and Training Foundation was created by a group of 17 adults from different professional sectors and with enough experience abroad to realise that Cyprus’ youth is academically advanced compared to other EU countries, but lacks empowerment, work-related attributes and the ethics to thrive in the labour market.
Filios Savvides, president of IEEN, explained that this is a problem resulting from the post-war period in Cyprus.
“Because of the invasion,” he said, “people were more protective of their children. They didn’t want them to go and study something that wouldn’t guarantee financial security. Children were driven by their families. They usually went into the profession chosen for them and were not allowed to decide freely for themselves. They therefore had no aspirations for excelling or for professional development.” IEEN, a registered charity since 2008, believes that young people should begin their training young - ideally while still at school - and acts as a link between employers and the young. Combatting clientelism and nepotism in the workplace is a major focus.
“About a year and a half ago, coincidence had it that a group of people who shared these views were brought together and decided to act as volunteers,” added Savvides. There are currently ten adult volunteers helping to organise various projects and events that involve young people.
The biggest of these is Second Life.
Inspired by Tigadoo (a Nicosia based eco-friendly children’s products and services provider) and in collaboration with IEEN, the project aims to change consumer habits and the negative perception that surrounds second-hand objects.
Aude-Marie Auphan, owner of Tigadoo and volunteer at IEEN explained that the project aims at involving young students as volunteers who collect books, toys, clothes and accessories in good condition, clean them up and if needed re-package them, put them on display to be bought and given a second life. All proceeds are given to charities.
Both Auphan and Savvides, referred to the negative perception that second-hand items have in Cyprus. Savvides said that “people feel that buying second-hand is something beneath them, like it is something only poor people would do. But that is not the case.”
“The idea is to raise awareness,” said Auphan, “to produce less waste and to change the habits we have as consumers.” It is also about giving young volunteers a different perspective on consumerism and teaching them sustainability and how to become more environmentally friendly in their habits.
“Second Life is not aiming to create a revolution,” Auphan said, “just an evolution. This is the best time to ask ourselves about our consumer habits and change them.”
“The crisis is allowing people to rethink their priorities”, said Savvides, “and in Cyprus people need to reassess their fluidity. They need to understand that just because they are high-income families now, this doesn’t mean that will always be the case. Parents should teach their children to be flexible, as well as other attributes that come along with that - sensitivity to others, responsibility etc.”
The Second Life project collaborates with four Nicosia-based private schools - American Academy, Highgate Private School, the American International School, and the Ecole Franco-Chypriote. Other schools (as well as other businesses and organisations) have shown an interest and the organisers are hoping to expand it as much as possible.
Second Life organised its first “One Day Boutique” of second-hand children’s items last October, with young volunteers joining forces with the elderly members of the Materia Nursing and Rehabilitation Unit, in order to prepare the second-hand items on sale. All profits from the event were donated to 12 charities that are each focusing on a specific target group. The success and the positive reception have led the organisers to establish it as an annual event.
Volunteers participating in the project and other IEEN events are as young as 12 years old and as old as 26.
“IEEN is open to anyone who feels young and uncertain,” Savvides said, adding that IEEN encourages young people to participate in a range of activities that will stimulate self-confidence and social responsibility, and will enable independence and self-reliance. It even hosts a mentoring and work placement programme where young people can talk to professionals and widen their horizons about professions they are interested in.
Auphan said “IEEN is about opening the doors to become curious, so that they are in a position to make their own choices and feel satisfied with them”.
“Business doesn’t mean making money,” added Savvides. “Young people need to realise there is more to life and they need to be independent and self-sufficient enough to be happy.”
The aim is to avoid the overqualified symptom in Cyprus which leads so many young people to depression because they can’t find a job in their field. If they know what the potential of their chosen profession are, they will be more prepared when entering the labour force and most importantly, according to Savvides, will become more flexible and better able to respond to the changes in their lives, and even reinvent themselves in times of crisis.
IEEN hopes to have its physical premises available before mid-2013. The charity’s base will host the offices, as well as seminar/workshop rooms.
“We are happy to welcome people who want to explore, who want to share and extend their network and advice, and who want to volunteer with us,” said Savvides.
IEEN operates exclusively on volunteerism. It receives small funds from various EU and national youth programmes distributed by the Cyprus Youth Board. It is a grassroots charity, encouraging youth to present and indulge in their ideas and to develop a critical approach to life.
For more info on IEEN and Second Life: www.ieen.org, info@ieen.org.cy, as well as on Facebook.
Contact: Filios Savvides 99574549, Aude-Marie Auphan 99576496, Marina Polycarpou 99607567
The four Nicosia-based private schools mentioned operate as collection points for donations for Second Life. Points of Sale also operate in Nicosia at the Highgate Private School, the Makarios Avenue Branch of the CDB Bank, and the Potenzia Del Arte Academy.

Second Life Oct 2012 event

UNTIL the 1990s, the pretty drive up to the Troodos mountains was always marred by the grey, barren hillside scar at Amiantos, the price of 84 years of asbestos mining there.
Even now, 21 years after the state first announced plans to reforest the area, the damage caused to the landscape is clearly visible.
The asbestos mine in Amiantos opened in 1904 and closed in 1988 after financial difficulties, and by 1992 its licence was revoked. It is estimated that in the 1930s around 6,000 people were employed there.
State-funded rejuvenation works have not been not sufficiently generous to fully restore the area, so a large chunk of the project has been financed by the European Economic Area (EEA) grant fund. Last month a further agreement was signed between the planning bureau and the forestry department for the financing of a biodiversity conservation project. The EEA grants will provide 84.3 per cent of the total project budget of €1.35 million, with the government contributing the rest.
Chief Forest Officer, Marios Christodoulou said the project aimed to establish at the lowest possible cost, a stable, self-maintained forest ecosystem with features similar to that of the neighbouring forest.
“This will then help to cover certain exposed surfaces that are potential sources of asbestos fibres being released into the air, to conserve catchment and to restore the initial potential uses of the area and its aesthetic and other environmental values as much as possible,” he said.
He explained that the project will begin with the appointment of the project management team, which will require two experts, one in hydro-seeding and a second in mine restoration who will evaluate current restoration techniques, train personnel and submit technical reports. They will help evaluate and improve the current mine restoration techniques.
Christodoulou added that a biodiversity workshop will be organised in the second year during which experts from different fields will present practical ways for integrating wildlife.
Plans are in place for an artificial pond with a capacity of between 30 and 40 thousand cubic metres to be created to meet irrigation, aesthetic and wildlife needs in the landscaping of the mine core. Some direct measures to favour wildlife are also planned such as the installation of artificial bird nests, provision of water and feeding points, improvement of bat refuges and the construction of stonewalls.
The restoration of an area of 14 hectares around the mine core is planned. This includes the stabilisation and reshaping of waste heaps, transporting and covering it with natural topsoil, ground preparation, planting and sowing.
The dangerous nature of asbestos makes mine restoration even more pressing, said Christodoulou.
“The surface of the mine is occupied by asbestos wastes and rock fronts, which are potential sources of air-born asbestos fibres, and therefore they should be covered to reduce fibres being released in the air,” he explained.
“The mine is also part of the Troodos National Forest Park with the highest recreational and tourist value on the island. It is also part of a very important watershed, which flows into the biggest water dam in Cyprus, whose water is used mostly for domestic purposes,” he said.
When work first began on the rehabilitation project in 1995, the main focus was to ensure harmful minerals were no longer released into the atmosphere.
No time target was set even though it was highly desirable to complete the task the soonest possible according to Christodoulou.
“With the knowledge that asbestos is unsafe, our first efforts were to make sure no harm could come to the public first and then to the environment,” he said. “Bearing that in mind, initial work that was carried out ensured people’s safety, first and foremost.”
It was also a political commitment to neighbouring communities, to give first priority to the stabilisation of waste tips. These, under certain circumstances could endanger lives and properties downstream, especially at the village of Amiantos situated only one kilometre from the lower edge of the mine.
The rehabilitation programme is progressing well according to Christodoulou who said roughly 125 hectares has already been reforested.
He explained that there are some major problems that management has to deal with in the near future though.
“Plant germinability and growth on steep sites is not sufficient and in many cases this contributes to continuous erosion and further decline of the site’s fertility,” he said. The total volume of topsoil required for the whole mine is huge, two million cubic metres, and it is questionable if such a quantity can be found in the next 10-15 years at a reasonable cost, he said.
“Unfortunately no evaluation of the success of certain reforestation and re-vegetation techniques was made, making the cost is too high,” Christodoulou said.
One major addition to the area over the last ten years has been the Botanical Garden situated on the borders of the old asbestos mine of Amiantos, just a short drive off the main Nicosia-Troodos road.
The garden, named after the Anastasios G Leventis Foundation for their financial contribution to the project, has proved a popular tourist attraction.
“The main objectives of the Troodos Botanical Garden are to contribute to environmental education and enlightening of the public, by providing opportunities for recreation, research on flora and plant communities and the preservation and protection of endangered plants species,” Christodoulou said.
The garden includes both indigenous and selected exotic and cultivated plants of the region. When finished, the garden will host around 500 different plant species.

Amiantos now after reforestation

Amiantos in 1995

Fine  dodgers pay up before going on cruise

DOZENS of people owing the state thousands of euros in unpaid fines were caught on a Greece-bound cruise ship moored in Limassol port, police said yesterday.
Authorities performed checks in Limassol port as part of an ongoing campaign to nab fine dodgers.
Nine people owing €1,329 paid on the spot. Police extracted assurances that 25 others who had 50 court-issued payment warrants on their name and collectively owing €21,818 would pay on their return.
Members of the public can call the citizen’s line at 1460 and cite their ID number to find out if they owe the state money, Angelides said.
Since the police announced in early January they will be checking for fine defaulters at ports of entry and exit, authorities have collected €2.75 million, though the state is still owed over €130 million in outstanding payment warrants.

Superglues withdrawn

THE LABOUR ministry’s health and safety department announced yesterday that two super-glues have been withdrawn from the market after it was discovered they contained carcinogenic ingredients.
“The products were imported from countries outside the EU,” the head of the Health and Safety Department, Tasoula Kyprianidou, said. Kyprianidou said the glues had appeared recently on a list released by RAPEX, which is the EU rapid alert system. It facilitates the rapid exchange of information between member states and the Commission on measures taken to prevent or restrict the marketing or use of products posing a serious risk to the health and safety of consumers with the exception of food, pharmaceutical and medical devices, which are covered by other mechanisms. 
“The department has begun a campaign to make sure all products have the correct ingredients detailed on them,” she added.

'INFORM ME'

THE government has set-up a special online service called ‘Inform Me’ which will help civil servants and members of local government keep members of the public up-to-date with news from the public sector.
Visitors can sign up as a member and by specifying their interests can receive relevant material via their email. A message on the site clearly states, “The state closer to its citizens” and “complete and accurate information for everyone about everything”.
www.kepa.gov.cy/em/

BASES EXERCISE

RESIDENTS in the area of Akrotiri have been warned they may experience inconveniences on roads close to the Akrotiri British Base, due to a military exercise which will begin on March 5 and end on March 28. They have also been warned not to be alarmed by the sounds of any explosions which might be heard.

BOMB DAMAGES BUILDING

THE INTERIOR of a Kato Paphos building was damaged on Friday night when a makeshift bomb went off at around 11pm.
The premises were being used as a storage space, and police yesterday were unable to say what the perpetrators motives were.
“All possibilities are being investigated,” Paphos police spokesman Nicos Tsapis told state broadcaster CyBC yesterday.

A LOOKALIKE of missing British girl Madeleine McCann who disappeared aged three during a family holiday in Portugal six years ago was recently spotted in the village of Xylofagou in Famagusta, police yesterday confirmed.
“Police headquarters informed us on February 20 that a member of the public had sighted a girl, roughly aged 10, who looked like Madeleine,” Famagusta police spokesman George Economou said.
The girl was one of three children with a British family who were renting a holiday apartment in Xylofagou, Economou said. But by the time police were informed about the sighting, the family had already left their holiday home and were thought to have left the country, Economou said.
Daily newspaper Politis found out about the case this week and police yesterday confirmed the story.
“This person has looked at a lot of pictures of Madeleine on the internet and thought (the girl he saw) was the same one,” Economou said.
But when police checked in with the owner of the holiday apartment on February 20, they were told the family had left roughly two weeks earlier, Economou said.
Soon after the British couple left the Xylofagou apartment, an arrest warrant was issued to their name after the owner of the apartment reported some items were missing, but Economou said their understanding was the family had already left the country.
Authorities have given the couple’s details to INTERPOL.
A number of false sightings of Madeleine have taken place around the world, with one of the latest one being in New Zealand where a DNA investigation showed the lookalike was not Madeleine.
Madeleine went missing in early May 2007 from an apartment in the resort of Praia da Luz, days before her fourth birthday. Her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann had left their children, Madeleine and her two siblings, while they ate at a nearby restaurant, taking turns to check in on them.
The case received massive media attention but both British and Portuguese police were unable to find the girl and Portuguese authorities suspended their investigations in 2008.
The Official Find Madeleine Campaign Facebook page lists an age-progression image of Madeleine, as she may look aged 9. Madeleine’s parents also have a website at www.findmadeleine.com
A retired solicitor who published claims that Kate and Gerry McCann caused their daughter’s death has also been recently given a suspended sentence, the Guardian reported last week.  

LARNACA District Court yesterday issued an eight day remand for three men in relation to defrauding millions from an elderly Turkish Cypriot woman who said she had been short-changed over her expropriated land.
Three Famagusta-based men, a 70-year-old lawyer, and two businessmen, 66 and 56, are under investigation in relation to the alleged theft of about €3.85 million, that police said yesterday was part of the woman’s compensation for a piece of land expropriated by the state.
The 83-year-old woman, who moved to the UK in 1988, agreed in 2009 to a government expropriation of land in Polemidia near Limassol, appointing a Famagusta-based lawyer as her property’s administrator.
But she told police on February 20 that she was still waiting for the full amount owed to her.
The woman had given the lawyer power of attorney to push forward procedures over the 37 donum piece of land police spokesman Andreas Angelides said. One donum is roughly 1,337 square metres.
Although the Central Bank had issued a cheque to her name for €6.6million, she told police that she had only received €2.75 million, Angelides said.
The rest went into the account of the 66-year-old businessman. Angelides said that other amounts moved into the 56-year-old’s account as well as into the account of a Turkish Cypriot man, 65, whom authorities are now looking for. Larnaca news agency said the Turkish Cypriot man was one of the woman’s four children. The 83-year-old’s husband died in 2009, Larnaca news agency said.

PRESIDENT Nicos Anastasiades said yesterday employees of semi-government organisations should not worry about their jobs amid the growing prospects of privatising some semi-governmental organisations.
He was commenting on statements made by Finance Minister Michalis Sarris on Friday when he said that while many state or semi-state bodies were not in a position to be privatised, strategic investors could be found for the telecommunications authority CyTA, which may be of help to the indebted country.
Anastasiades said yesterday that the “path that the finance minister will follow has been laid” adding that he could “emphatically stress” that workers did not have to worry.
Party AKEL, now in opposition after five years in government, accused Anastasiades of fooling his constituency for votes while going back on his electoral anti-privatisation statements.
Sarris “has stated that in the hands of the private sector, semi-governmental organisations can work with fewer employees and at a lower cost,” AKEL MP Stavros Evagorou said.
“He even went further stating that Cyprus is not essentially a modern state since public benefit bodies still belong to it,” Evagorou said, calling on Anastasiades to comment or else leave them “to assume they have electorally fooled people to get their votes”.
Sarris had said that Cyprus was one of the few countries in the world where important and productive sectors are still in the hands of the state.
Anastasiades said there was no need to comment further on AKEL statements, but stressed he would concentrate efforts to ensure Cyprus’ debt will be sustainable when negotiating with the country’s European partners on a bailout.
EDEK deputy Nicos Nicolaides said yesterday that it was clear from the memorandum agreement made during the previous government that if the debt was not sustainable, then privatisation would be discussed.
“Government and political parties need to address themselves to the people with clarity and honesty so that they know what will happen to state property, which is their property, but also what our stance will be with (our lenders),” Nicolaides said.
He said EDEK is against privatising important semi-state bodies, especially at a time of financial instability when electricity, telecommunications, and water access “need to be secured for all”. He was referring to CyTA, the water board, and the electricity authority which are all semi-state bodies.

FINANCE Minister Michalis Sarris yesterday left for Brussels where he is due to present Cyprus’ proposal on a money-laundering audit of Cyprus’ banking system during tomorrow’s Eurogroup meeting.
Sarris told the Cyprus News Agency they would propose that the Council of Europe’s Moneyval should carry out money-laundering checks, with the supervision of Cyprus’ Central Bank and - if necessary - of private experts who are “beyond any doubt”.
During last month’s Eurogroup meeting - the meeting of finance ministers in the eurozone - Eurogroup head Jeroen Dijsselbloem referred to an “agreement” to appoint a private firm to assess how Cyprus’ banks comply with anti-money laundering regulation, but no official Eurogroup statement was actually issued and it is understood that no consensus was reached on the matter.
Sarris said that at Cyprus’ end, a meeting was held this Thursday to agree on an evaluation model. In addition to Sarris, present at the meeting were the recently departed former finance minster Vassos Shiarly, the central bank governor Panicos Demetriades, and the attorney general Petros Clerides.
“I believe we have reached a formula that will also satisfy those who may want a somewhat different evaluation,” Sarris told the Cyprus News Agency.
“In this way we can prove once and for all that all these (money laundering) accusations are baseless,” Sarris said, adding however that moving forwards would be “very difficult without resolving the matter”.
Sarris is due to have meetings today with his German counterpart, Wolfgang Schaeuble and other eurozone and European Commission top brass, including head of the Eurogroup Working Group of senior officials, Thomas Wieser.
Schaeuble said yesterday the Eurogroup would not rush into any decisions tomorrow in relation to Cyprus.
"Cypriot banks are completely oversized in relation to the country's gross domestic product. This situation cannot continue. That's where the problem needs to start being tackled," he said according to an advance copy of an article due to be published in German newspaper Tagesspiegel today.
Cyprus needs 8-10 billion euros to recapitalise its banks and 7 billion to repay loans and finance government operations. Such a rescue would increase the island's debts to around 145 per cent of GDP, a level considered unsustainable.
European policymakers have been split over how to handle a bailout of Cyprus, with Germany and some other countries pushing for bank depositors to bear part of the cost and many other member states worried such a move will cause a bank run.
Sarris said on Friday that any talk of a haircut on deposits was ‘foolish’ and that depositors would not be made to carry part of the cost.
Schaeuble said that the Eurogroup was in close dialogue with Russia that is interested in a solution given that investors hold deposits in Cyprus’ banks and that Russia itself is a creditor to the island, he told the newspaper.
In an interview with Austrian broadcaster ORF, Wieser reiterated that Cyprus' steps to crack down on suspected money laundering will be a precondition for any outside aid but warned against blanket accusations that the country was awash with dubious funds from Russia.
He said it was unfair to suggest all Russian money there was suspect or to assume that other foreigners' funds in Cyprus were beyond reproach.
Wieser said yesterday that a bailout agreement with Cyprus, on hold for the past eight months, needed to be reached by the end of March.
"It's getting a bit tight," Wieser said
"The financing of Cyprus is still secured for the coming weeks and months but we have to come to a negotiating result in the course of March."

TALK ABOUT a possible haircut of deposits of Cypriot banks has become a very fashionable topic of debate among EU officials and politicians. A day rarely seems to go by without someone making a statement on the matter or a leaked document about the EU Commission’s options being published in a newspaper.
On Wednesday a European Central Bank official, speaking on the future of the eurozone, did not rule out the possibility of a haircut on deposits in excess of €100,000 so that Cyprus’ debt is reduced to a manageable level. On Friday, the German daily Die Welt, quoting a confidential European Commission report, said the haircut was one of three options with regard to the Cyprus rescue package. In this way, the cost of the bailout would be more fairly shared and not just footed by EU taxpayers, some argued.
Our EU partners are proposing a political solution to what is unarguably an economic problem. A haircut of deposits would satisfy public opinion in several northern European countries, where politicians and the media have been protesting that their taxpayers’ money would be used to protect the bank deposits of Russian oligarchs and money-launderers. This explains talk about the cost of the bailout being more fairly shared.
But all that a bail-in of depositors would achieve would be to create the impression of a fairer distribution of the cost, because by the time a decision is taken by the EU authorities the Russians would have transferred their money to banks in other countries. In fact, this is already happening. According to the Central Bank, deposits reached their lowest level in three years in January with an outflow of €1.73 billion. February’s withdrawals were probably much higher, given the prevalence of reports about a haircut.
This political solution may satisfy the German taxpayer, but apart from dealing a fatal blow to the Cyprus banking system and the Cyprus economy, it could cause financial instability in eurozone. The markets could well start betting on which eurozone country would be next in line for a deposits’ haircut. It might not come to this, but once such a decision has been taken there is no guarantee that contagion would be avoided.
There is of course an economic solution to the issue of debt sustainability which has sparked all the talk of a haircut. There should be a fair and balanced assessment of the re-capitalisation needs of the Cypriot banks, which unfortunately has not taken place. The PIMCO figure, in the region of €10 billion, is grossly exaggerated, because our communist former government decided to blame the country’s economic difficulties, which it had caused with its profligacy, exclusively on the banking sector.
For the last nine months the Christofias government engaged in a merciless campaign against the banks, helped by the Central Bank governor it appointed last May, in order to deflect attention away from its criminal mismanagement of the economy. They were leaking to the media information that the banks would need €10 billion before independent consultants PIMCO had even been hired.
The assumptions given to PIMCO by the steering committee, on which the governor chose not to sit, were designed to maximise the banks’ re-capitalisation needs. Worse still, PIMCO’s technocrats were not allowed to have any contact with the banks as had happened in Ireland and Greece when their banks’ capital needs were being calculated by consultants. In effect, the anti-capitalist government went out of its way to punish the banks, barring any consultations between them and PIMCO when their capital needs were being assessed; it was no coincidence that the Central Bank agreed with the troika suggestion that PIMCO used the adverse macro-economic scenario in its calculations thus adding an extra €3 billion to the banks’ capitalisation needs.
It is true that the over-bloated figure for bank assistance was arrived at with the consent of the Central Bank, which was following the government’s political agenda. But would it be fair, now, for the EU to condemn Cyprus to decades of economic depredation because it had a government that put the interests of the communist party above those of the country?
We would hope our EU partners would help us overcome the destruction wreaked by five years of communist mismanagement rather than make the situation worse. The way forward is a fair and balanced assessment of the banks’ capital needs, which, we are certain, would make the debt sustainable and render the drastic measures being discussed by the EU unnecessary.

WE WERE overjoyed to see our dear Fuhrer, Nice Nik, sweep triumphantly into power last Sunday ending the Terrible Tof tyranny and freeing us from the AKEL yoke that had threatened to turn Kyproulla into the Albania of the Mediterranean.
Communist misrule is over, the People’s Republic of Kyproulla has given way to the First Reich of Zypern, the red hordes will soon go home and the comrade can no longer cause us harm, having retreated to his Kellaki dacha, to produce red wine vinegar for his friends and family.
There is also a selfish reason for our joy. In the previous two presidential elections our establishment had backed candidates that lost and there was a danger that our support would be viewed as the kiss of death, confirmation that a candidate is a loser.
For once, we backed the winner, but our joy soon turned to disappointment when it became apparent that Nik would not reward Patroclos’ loyalty with a ministerial appointment or at least make him a Commissioner of something.
But we assure our new president that we would never allow this bitter disappointment to turn into hostility towards him, for now. We will wait until he appoints the chairmen of the semi-governmental organisations and if again he chooses DIKO losers ahead of Patroclos, who has a preference for CyTA, it will mean war.

ELECTIONS always turn Kyproulla into the People’s Republic of Arslikhan, with hundreds of leading citizens sharpening their tongues and getting their saliva flowing in the hope that this would enable them to be awarded a ministry.
Names of nobodies appear in newspapers as prospective appointees, the heads of pretenders regularly pop up behind the president-elect during public appearances, others wait outside his office to congratulate him while some recruit the help of influential party to people to advance their claim.
One man successfully used his father-in-law, an influential DISY stalwart, to land a ministerial post in the new government. The formidable father-in-law, renowned for his powers of persuasion, arranged a meeting with Nik and in no time secured a ministry for his daughter’s hubby.
The news was immediately posted on a newspaper website to ensure the appointment was locked.

OTHERS were not so lucky, because not everyone has an influential dad-in-law, with access to Nik.
Poor old Professor Philippos Patsalis, head of the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, may have been following the Fuhrer during Sunday’s celebrations and he was mentioned as a possible health minister, but in the end he got nothing, because health was reserved for Garoyian’s gang of losers.
Garoyian first proposed the self-important Paphite, Christos Patsalides who had served as interior minister in the Ethnarch’s government and as an unsuccessful health minister in Tof’s. The tribes of Paphos were certain that their man would get the post, but wise Nik, bless him, pooh-poohed the idea, causing mass mourning in the hillbilly district.
Had he been appointed, the principled Paphite for all seasons would have served as minister under three presidents, all of different political backgrounds. Yiorkos Iacovou, whose stellar political career sadly came to an end this week, served under four presidents, but two were from DIKO and under Tof he was only a commissioner.
 
In the end there was no Paphite in the cabinet for the first time since the 1980s, prompting complaints in Hicksville. Paphite DISY member Simos Tselepos said that Paphos had many personalities, one whom could have been in the cabinet. Paphos’ loss was our gain, as Nik figured out.

THE HEALTH ministry was given to another Garoyian protégé, Dr Petros Petrides, an appointment that caused much amusement among the medical community. Dr Petrides had enjoyed the patronage of the late Spy Kyp and was vice-president of the state doctors’ union, one of the island’s most irresponsible unions.
In his biographical note sent out by the PIO, it said that Dr Petrides studied medicine at Athens University “with a specialisation in angio-surgery”. But from what we know he obtained this specialisation at a later stage in his career and not from Athens University. Why had he omitted to mention the university at which he trained for this specialisation?
It was good enough for him land the post of director of the angio-surgery clinic of the Nicosia General Hospital, so why is he reluctant to mention the medical school at which he trained.
Dr Petrides became minister because he got lucky. Nik had already rejected Patsalides and could not bring himself to reject Garoyian’s second nominee for the post, even though he must have known that a former union boss, with specialisation in angio-surgery and mentored by Spy was the last person he could rely on to introduce the national health scheme in the next five years.

STAYING on health issues, there was also a lobby group that tried to prevent the new president from appointing Christos Stylianides to any government post. The pancyprian association of patients of the Stylianides dental practice pulled all the strings to keep him out of the new government, so he could carry on treating them, but failed to avert his appointment as government spokesman.
The argument that their teeth had rights too and an under-employed DIKO lawyer, whom nobody would have missed, could have been appointed spokesman did not dissuade Nik and neither did the threat of dynamic action. He obviously has healthy teeth and could not show any sensitivity for those of us who do not.

EUROCOCK deputy leader Rikkos Erotocritou might not have been appointed minister, but his fans were ready to organise a big party for him on hearing that he would be appointed deputy attorney-general, replacing Tof courtier Akis Papasavvas, who was due to retire in June.
Papasavvas however wrecked the party plans, declaring that he would stay in his post until June, because he had no accumulated leave to take. State employees usually take all their accumulated leave (two to three months in many cases) ahead of retirement. As Papasavvas has none to take he will carry on serving the country, and the party for Rikkos’ appointment, regrettably, has had to be put off until June.

CONGRATULATIONS to self-righteous MEP’s assistant and part-time Brussels correspondent of Sigma TV Yiannos Charalambides who seized the opportunity to explain the high moral standards he expects from our politicians.
The insufferably self-regarding Charalambides took great offence when he heard, during a Sigma debate last Sunday that Michalis Sarris was almost certain to be appointed finance minister and felt duty-bound to share his moral disgust with the TV viewers.
The morally superior hack felt that Sarris who had been detained in the north in connection with fabricated vice charges, was unsuitable to be a minister and asked the following question to make his point. “If I was caught in a casino in the north with women of easy virtue would they make me a minister?”
If he was a member of DIKO and had Garoyian’s backing, of course they would.
But it seems a bit hypocritical that a 24-carat bash-patriot like Charalambides could cite the pseudo charges, brought by the pseudo-police in the pseudo-court of a pseudo-state to make moral case against someone. Is he not afraid that by doing so he is recognising the pseudo-state?
 
THE AKEL-appointed leadership of the Central Bank, Governor Panicos and his deputy Stavrinakis wasted no time in paying their respects to the new president. They sent him congratulatory letters on Monday.
In their respective letters, they both “assured” the new president that the Central Bank “within the framework of its authorities as an independent institution, would work closely with the new government to overcome all the problems and challenges faced by the banking sector the economy of our country in general.”
This is the same Central Bank that within the framework of its authorities as an independent institution, worked closely with the previous government to create insurmountable problems for the banking sector and the economy of our country in general.
Change of government, change of policy for the independent state institution, the governors of which could be feeling a bit of job insecurity now that their comrades are no longer around to protect them.

CONFUSION surrounds last week’s London visit by Governor Panicos. The Tass news agency initially sent a report saying that, according to its information, the Professor was having “important contacts” in London “with potential investors for the Cypriot banks”.
No other information was given by the agency, but it seemed bizarre that the guy who had been publicly discrediting Cypriot banks for the last eight months, exaggerating their problems and inflating their capital needs, was now trying to get people to invest in them.
A few hours later, Tass sent out another story about Panicos’ London visit. It said: “According to Cyprus News Agency information, the main purpose of the trip was to inform the British media about enforcement of legislation relating to the fight against money laundering.”
No mention was made about his “important contacts with potential investors” because he probably did not find any. But I am sure the new president noted his zealous efforts to counter the negative publicity we are receiving in the British media.

NOBODY loves publicity like our Nobel Laureate Christoforos Pissarides who was on our TV screens almost every night last week. He was by Nik’s side during Sunday’s victory celebrations, visited the DISY offices in the week and made statements to TV hacks, whenever they put a mike in his face. For the economy’s recovery, we should focus on agricultural production, exporting olives, wines and halloumi.
Although he seemed keen to become a minister, Pissarides had to settle with the honorary post of chairman of the National Council for the Economy. According to our moles at the DISY offices the Nobel-winner was a bit miffed when he asked how much he would get paid and was told ‘nothing’.

WELCOME back to the Egyptian ambassador Ms Menha Mahrous Bakhoum, who had disappeared from the island shortly after throwing a wobbly at Larnaca Airport, slapping a female cop who had insisted she went through a security check before entering the departure lounge.
Ms Bakhoum left the island on January 2 and was absent from her country’s National Day reception. She returned to Kyproulla on Monday. The Egyptian foreign ministry did not take any disciplinary action against her, but obviously thought it would be good for her to stay away for a while until things calmed down.
There aren’t many employers who would give their staff a two-month holiday for slapping a cop doing her job.

COMRADE TOF gave a fine performance at the farewell party given by the staff of the Palazzo de Popolo on Tuesday. There were tears, sentimentality and a touch of humour.
The tears flowed when he started thanking everyone.
There were no tears for “for my good friend Yiorgos Iacovou” or his “wave-barrier” Titos Christofides, but when he mentioned the government spokesman Stef Stef, his eyes swelled up and he was overcome by emotion. He had to stop and compose himself.
He also cried when mentioning Toumazos Tselepis, his negotiations advisor, whom he thanked “from the depths of my soul” for saving Cyprus with his proposal on the Cyprob. But the most tears were shed for the presidential guard “which kept the presidential palace intact at the hour of the big attack, the fabricated attack, after the Mari blast.”
Now that he will have only 15 police guards protecting him they might be unable to repel attacks on his Kellaki dacha.
He also praised the his son in law Nicos Moudouros who “had the courage to marry my daughter, the wild animal known as Christina, who cannot be tamed”

FAREWELL comrade and we assure you, you will not be missed.

ANGRY passengers have dubbed as ‘holding pens’ the outdoor areas at Paphos airport where they complain they have been left in all weathers, sometimes for more than an hour, before boarding their flights.
“It is disgraceful that in 2013 human beings are being treated worse than animals,” said one British lady who contacted the Sunday Mail.
“Surely this is a contravention of European law to hold people for 40-90 minutes in a pen without toilet facilities?” said the woman who did not wished to be named.
According to airport operator Hermes, many airlines have used these pre-boarding gates at Paphos airport, which frustrated customers refer to as ‘holding pens’ or ‘cattle sheds’.
“The pre-boarding gates at Paphos airport are similar to many used at other international airports,” said Adamos Aspris, Hermes spokesman. “Pre-boarding gates were created at Paphos to cater for the increasing demand by airlines for speedier boarding in view of the limited turnaround times of their aircraft.”
Low cost carrier, easyJet, is one of a number of airlines currently using this boarding facility. They have also been used by Ryanair and British Airways, according to Hermes.
But numerous complaints referring to the pre-boarding gates have been made through easyJet’s Facebook page in particular.
On the Facebook page, passenger John Cook complains of waiting at the pre-boarding gates for over an hour.
“On our flight back to Manchester in November, the EJ flight was the last flight out of Paphos airport. Before the incoming flight had even landed, we were called to the gate, and herded outside to the sheds, where we waited over an hour to board the plane,” he said.
He said that in January the same thing happened, except it was for a shorter time, around 30 minutes. “However, it was a bitterly cold and windy night. Please, can this stop, and can you (easyJet) reinstate the buses to take us to the plane. It is already stopping people from flying with you.”
The claims have been denied by airlines.
The Sunday Mail contacted Polina Digaletos - easyJet’s public relations office for Greece and Cyprus - who disputed allegations that passengers were left standing prior to boarding for any longer than 17 minutes at a time.
“With our 40 minutes scheduled turn time, it is obvious that none of our passengers will ‘stand’ in the holding gate for more than 15 to 17 minutes,” she said. “The stated timings are also confirmed by our ‘on-time performance’ at Paphos, which is close to 100 per cent.”
She confirmed that the use of these boarding gates was part of the ‘quick turnaround’ process used by a number of airlines - including easyJet - in order to reduce turnaround times and costs. She also pointed out that Hermes airports designed this facility.
Aspris though stressed that the decision on whether to use the pre-boarding gate lay with the respective airline. He said that generally passengers were not required to wait for a period longer than 30 minutes in the pre-boarding areas.
According to easyJet, their aircraft arrive at the designated stand at Paphos airport and depart from the stand all within 40 minutes. As soon as the aircraft arrives at the stand, departing passengers moved to the pre boarding gate.
The spokeswoman said: “Between 15 to 17 minutes after arrival at the stand, the crew will release the cabin for boarding and the flow of departing passengers to the aircraft, will commence.”
According to Aspris, pedestrian operations were first introduced at Paphos airport in 2011.They have since been used by many airlines.
“These airlines inspected the mentioned facilities and found them satisfactory. Over half a million passengers have used the facilities so far,” he said.
But many passengers want the practice stopped altogether.
Marilyn Percival, another unhappy recent flyer, complained to easyJet after flying back from Paphos to Gatwick on December 13, 2012. She says her flight was called for the boarding before the inbound aircraft had landed.
“We were herded out to the pens and forced to stand until we could board about 20 minutes later. Not all of the passengers could fit under the outside cover and the terminal building was empty at the time. We had to walk to the plane. “
The customer noted that passengers who were not able to walk or stand for any length of time needed assistance to get on to the aircraft.
“People in wheelchairs were taken to the pens first, but in fact were boarded last so the able-bodied had to push past them, not a satisfactory example of good customer service by airport staff,” she said.
Digaletos said: “EasyJet do appreciate that the holding gates need certain improvements, and we have already highlighted these to Hermes Airports for further action.”

Paphos airport where travellers are complaining about the pre-boarding gates

FEARING that asylum seekers in Cyprus are detained indefinitely, a Syrian family tried to sneak in and out of the country on fake passports to seek asylum elsewhere but were detained by authorities, their family has said. 

The four Syrians, a couple and their son and a family friend, fled from Syria in fear of their lives, their Sweden-based family has told the Cyprus Mail. 

The four Syrians were caught at Larnaca airport in the early hours of February 24 trying to board a flight to Stockholm via Warsaw on fake passports. Police said the suspects said they procured the passports in Turkey and then entered the government-controlled areas through the Turkish-occupied north. 

They are now being held in custody at the Central Prisons in Nicosia for entering the country illegally. 

Their lawyer, Michalis Paraskevas, said he has not yet been able to visit the family in what he described as a Catch-22. Remanded individuals may not see anyone other than an appointed lawyer, but most immigrants do not know who they can get in touch with, Paraskevas said. And even when someone manages to get people in touch with a lawyer, the lawyer would need to apply for an appointment to see his client, he added.

“It’s very tedious. You have to fight for the smallest thing,” Paraskevas said. 

Amnesty International and the Ombudswoman, among others, have said that authorities unnecessarily detain people and keep them in subpar conditions. 

The Syrian family decided to flee the country after an unprovoked attack that led them to seek refuge with friends and prompted them to flee to Turkey, said a family friend, translating on behalf of the family.

Fearing any repercussion for their relatives who are still in Syria, the family has asked they remain anonymous. 

“They are people from Syria escaping for their lives, like all other people in Syria (they) are trying to come to countries who (respect) their human rights (which) their country, Syria, doesn’t give them,” the family friend said. 

“They are not terrorists, only Syrian refugees escaping the war.”

The interior ministry’s permanent secretary Andreas Assiotis said that contrary to Paraskevas’ claims, Cyprus would not be able to send the family to Sweden, citing the Dublin legislation on asylum applications. 

The Dublin legislation, which establishes the principle that one member state is responsible for examining an asylum application, does allow an EU member state to request another country to examine an asylum application for humanitarian reasons “based in part on family or cultural considerations, provided that the persons concerned consent”.

“We are not going to turn asylum applicants into ping-pong balls,” Assiotis said. “Sweden would send them back because of the Dublin regulation, he said.

A new detention centre in Menoyia accommodating 256 people was finally set up this year for the short-term stay of illegal migrants and failed asylum seekers who are to be deported, which the government says meets all EU requirements on living standards.

According to data by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, over 25,500 people had their asylum applications rejected in Cyprus between 2002 and 2012.

About 1,300 people now have pending asylum appeals before the reviewing authority.

THROWING his weight behind the privatisation of state assets, Archbishop Chrysostomos II yesterday said he believed privatising semi-governmental organisations (SGOs) was the way forward. 

The outspoken head of the Church who likes to dabble in politics and publicly backed President Nicos Anastasiades in run-up to the elections, told an SGO yesterday - state broadcaster CyBC - that privatisations should start as soon as possible. 

“So that I’m not misunderstood, I stress that I do not wish for anyone to lose their job, and I believe this is also the government’s position,” the archbishop said. 

“(Employees) can move elsewhere,” he said, without specifying where.

“There has to be healthy competition because it brings progress… (and) SGOs, with their salaries and high staff numbers, will not be profitable in five years,” he said. 

The primate gave only two years to the telecommunications authority, CyTA and said it was best to sell majority stakes to the private sector.

The previous government had agreed to a draft bailout agreement with its international lenders that allows for the possibility of privatising state assets if the country’s debt is deemed unsustainable. 

On Saturday Anastasiades was forced to qualify statements by Finance Minister Michalis Sarris who had said strategic investors could be found for CyTA which is a better position of being privatised than other bodies.

Anastasiades said that SGO employees did not have to worry about their jobs, but said that the government would need to focus on ensuring the country’s debt would be sustainable during bailout negotiations. 

But AKEL, now in opposition after five years in government, has accused the government of a U-turn on their electoral promises. 

YIANNIS Karousos, a 34-year-old municipal councillor of seven years and member of various local committees, was officially proclaimed Ayia Napa mayor yesterday.

In a service at Ayia Napa municipality, the new mayor thanked the residents for voting for him and said he hoped that they may all be united for the good of the town. Karousos said his objectives included reducing unemployment, encouraging young scientists and negotiating the town’s development plan.

“It is certain that no one would want such an election under the circumstances that have lead to the vacant position of mayor,” he said, referring to the sudden death of the former mayor Antonis Tsokkos who died of a sudden heart attack on January 21, aged just 59.

“We will proceed with determination to achieve our goals. As of tomorrow we will get to work on making our city proud and fulfilling the programme we have put forward,” Karousos said.

He then proceeded to Ayia Napa cemetery for a memorial service for Tsokkos. Karousos also laid a wreath on the grave.

In Sunday’s election for mayor, DISY-backed Karousos got 50.3 per cent of the votes. Karousos beat Fotos Fotiou of AKEL who received 862 votes (38.35 per cent) and Andreas Ttofi Andreou of DIKO who received 255 votes (16.34 per cent).

Ayia Napa had 2,750 registered voters, 2,283 of whom (83.1 per cent) voted. Some 22 votes were invalid and 13 were blank.

The previous mayor died suddenly after complaining of breathing difficulties, before paramedics arrived at his home. During his time as mayor, he gained a reputation as being an articulate and accessible leader, who prided himself on having an ‘open office door’.

“There are no winners or losers. We will proceed together and I will be the mayor of all Ayia Napa’s people, without consideration of which political party they support or whether they voted for me or not. That is the job of the mayor, which I plan to carry out with a new vision,” Karousos said. 

DISY congratulated Karousos on his election and wished him luck in his new role. In a statement, DISY said that it believed the new mayor will complete his mission with success, during these economically difficult times. 

Six DISY members were sworn into parliament yesterday to fill President Nicos Anastasiades’ seat in the House and those of other MPs who were made ministers last week.

Andreas Pitsillides replaces Ioannis Kasoulides in Brussels a MEP after the latter was made foreign minister. Aristotelis Misos replaces Communications Minister Tasos Mitsopoulos as a Larnaca district MP and was sworn in yesterday at 8am at Larnaca District Administration’s office. 

Maria Kyriakou, Nikos Nourris, Rikkos Mappourides and Prodromos Prodromou replace Labour Minister Haris Georgiades, Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou, government spokesman Christos Stylianides and new MEP Andreas Pitsillides in the Nicosia district. Andreas Themistocleous takes over from Anastasiades as MP for Limassol.

Mappourides expressed his happiness at being given the opportunity to contribute to his country while Nourris said that being an MP is a challenge but with the knowledge he has, he believes he can be helpful. Kyriakou said the biggest challenge we are facing now is unemployment. 

“We are entering a difficult period and the economy needs re-organising,” she said.

Prodromou said he touched to be given his new position and expressed his support for the new government and its president. 

At his swearing in in Limassol, Themistocleous thanked the people for their support. 

“I would like to offer my support for the new government and President Nicos Anastasiades as well as the parties that helped him get into office,” Themistocleous said. “I’d like to thank the people who backed me in the parliamentary elections and I will make one promise to them, I will do whatever possible to make them proud of me every day.”

The new MPs will give their affirmations on Thursday.

AN ONGOING probe into suspected massive fraud at the port of Limassol could soon yield arrest warrants, police have said.

Launched three weeks ago, the criminal investigation relates to suspected over-invoicing for equipment purchased by the Limassol Licensed Porters Association (LLPA), as well as to totally bogus invoices.

The total over-invoicing amount could run in the millions.

Police said yesterday their investigations are at an “advanced stage”, with several people being called in for statements, among them the LLPA auditors as well as a number of suppliers and customers of the association.

In one reported case, the association was charged €3000 for a vehicle part normally worth €500. And for the same vehicle - used for work by the port workers - it was discovered that the tyres were replaced about a dozen times within the space of a year.

And according to Politis, machinery valued at €11 million was invoiced for €13 million, the difference ending up in the pockets of those involved in the scam.

Other reports said the cases under investigation date back about five years, and pertain to hundreds of purchases; the defrauded amount could be as high as €5 million.

On discovering last August that certain invoices issued for the purchase of accessories and machinery were unreasonably high, the LLPA board had brought in outside auditors to review their books. Their findings were then forwarded to the attorney-general’s office.

From the findings, the attorney-general established that elementary bookkeeping rules were not kept, and recommended to the association that it report the case to the police.

This absence of accounting checks “appears to have been exploited by a number of persons”, the attorney-general noted in his letter of response to the LLPA.

The in-house auditors and the person responsible for purchases at the LLPA have meanwhile been suspended by the Cyprus Ports Authority, which regulates matters concerning licensed porters.

The chairman of the association Andreas Charilaou has been quoted as saying that three porters, aged around 60, have been sent on forced leave.

The LLPA is a collective of businesses employing longshoremen for transportation of freight from the ships to storerooms and their safekeeping during their storage, until delivery.

They procure the equipment - such as forklifts - and supervise the collection of cargo from ships, which they transport, sort out and deliver to the consignees.

The longshoremen are self-employed. A shake-up of port personnel took place recently, when the Cyprus Shipping Agents Association came in and offered compensation to certain highly-paid workers, who they then replaced with employees on lower wages.

The shipping agents had also intended to buy out the LLPA itself, but the venture stalled apparently due to a lack of financing.

FORMER President Demetris Christofias had argued in favour of seizing Iranian munitions in January 2009, but subsequent responsibility for safe storage of the cargo lay with military authorities, a defendant in the Mari criminal trial testified yesterday.

In Larnaca court, Marcos Kyprianou - who was foreign minister at the time of the July 11, 2011 blast - denied any culpability over the incident that left 13 people dead.

Kyprianou produced the minutes of a February 2009 meeting of the Cabinet, where Christofias is quoted as saying that confiscating the munitions was in the country’s best interest.

His job was to enforce his president’s policy, the former chief diplomat told the court

Kyprianou denied allegations by prosecution witnesses that he had recommended taking recourse to the UN Security Council’s Sanctions Committee in order to “buy time” for Cyprus.

Rather, he said, that idea was the brainchild of Leonidas Pantelides, a chief Christofias aide. Kyprianou said moreover that he had disagreed with the proposal.

The former foreign minister said also that in his opinion the attorney-general had been forced to prosecute him under public pressure.

Kyprianou moreover denied any liability for the way in which the munitions were stored, saying that responsibility lay with the military and the National Guard general staff.

Around 100 containers were stockpiled at the Mari naval base, and left exposed to the elements for two-and-a-half years.

Kyprianou blamed military officers for not keeping government officials adequately briefed on the state of the munitions. In particular, he pointed the finger at Colonel Giorgos Georgiades, commander of the ordnance corps at the time in question.

Kyprianou said of Georgiades that whereas he “posed as an expert of the National Guard general staff, he did not spell out the urgency of a blast risk.”

“I could never imagine that the chief of the National Guard as well as its leadership would issue orders for stacking the containers in a way that contravenes international regulations,” he said.

Kyprianou was the first of the accused to take the stand after the Larnaca criminal court found there was a prima facie case against six defendants on trial in connection with the deadly blast.

The other defendants are former defence minister Costas Papacostas, former National Guard deputy chief Savvas Argyrou, former fire service chief Andreas Nicolaou, deputy fire chief Charalambos Charalambous and former disaster response squad (EMAK) commander Andreas Loizides. They face charges of manslaughter and causing death by negligence.

Kyprianou had quit a week after the blast. At the time, he apologised for any mistakes that may have led to the accident, but said he was resigning “not because there is a feeling of guilt but for reasons of political sensitivity.”

CYPRUS should have signed a bailout deal months ago, a top economist said yesterday, ahead of a Eurogroup meeting that discussed the island’s application.

“We have taken more time to agree on a memorandum than any other country in Europe,” Christoforos Pissarides told reporters. “A small country like Cyprus cannot be so complicated to need so much time.”

Cyprus first requested a bailout in June last year but it was not possible to reach an agreement with the last, communist-led government.

President Nicos Anastasiades has pledged to work for a swift deal to prop up the island's banks, which need capital of around 8-10 billion euros. 

The total bailout, including financing for general government operations and to finance existing debt, could be up to €17 billion, equal to Cyprus annual economic output.

“The memorandum should have been signed months ago,” Pissarides, now in charge of the island’s national council for the economy, said.

Pissarides, who was awarded the Nobel prize for economics in 2010, said signing the deal was a matter of urgency - to lift the uncertainty and end damaging speculation.

“(Speculation) creates huge problems and it makes the situation worse. The more we delay the worse the situation would be afterwards,” he said.

Case in point is the outflow in deposits because of talk of a haircut.

Anastasiades yesterday met for the first time in his official capacity as president with Central Bank Governor Panicos Demetriades and his deputy Spyros Stavrinakis, who was appointed in the dying days of the previous AKEL-ruled government, to discuss the current economic situation. The three men agreed to meet again next week. 

Speaking in Brussels on Sunday, Finance Minister Michalis Sarris repeated his opposition to any haircut on deposits. 

Sarris said such options, which have not been formally discussed, would strike a fundamental blow to Cyprus’ services economy, hinder its ability to repay loans and set a damaging precedent.

“It will be a pity if we deal a fatal blow to this rebirth in confidence in the economy by making unreasonable demands,” he said, according to the Financial Times.

Some countries appear to be in favour of a haircut on uninsured deposits - over €100,000 - although eurozone officials fear that this would panic creditors in other countries.

Sarris said media speculation has caused substantial outflows in deposits.

Figures released last week showed around €1.6 billion - a little over 2 per cent of total deposits - was withdrawn in January as talk of a "bail-in" intensified.

Germany has kept up the pressure with Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble saying on Sunday that Cyprus banking sector was too big in relation to the size of the economy.

Olli Rehn, the European commissioner for economic affairs, warned over the weekend that the prospect of Cyprus leaving the eurozone remained a dangerous possibility, saying such a prospect should be a concern even for big EU economies.

"Even if you come from a big EU country, you should be aware that every member of the euro zone is systemically relevant," Rehn was quoted as saying in Der Spiegel in a veiled criticism of Schaeuble, who has questioned whether the island is systemically relevant.

"If Cyprus becomes disorderly insolvent, it is very likely that would lead to it exiting the eurozone," Rehn said.

NATIONAL carrier Cyprus Airways (CY) more than doubled its losses last year to €55.8 million, hit by falling passenger figures and freight earnings, the company said yesterday.

The airline, which is majority owned by the Cypriot state, posted a 17.6 per cent drop in total revenue to €175.5 million. 

Its net loss in 2011 was €23.9 million.

“This considerable decrease in revenue was mainly attributed to the reduction in passenger and freight revenue,” the airline said. “The number of seats available for sale was reduced as a result of our abandoning unprofitable routes and the limited demand due to the economic downturn and intensifying competition.”

The carrier said it expected the coming year to be challenging because of an economic downturn in its main markets, Cyprus and Greece.

“In addition, the current year is characterised by the instability in the energy sector, the constant currency fluctuations, in particular those of the US dollar and the euro, the fluctuations in interest rates and the increase in unemployment and labour insecurity mainly in Europe,” the airline said.

The company said it is implementing a turnaround plan, which includes outsourcing, redundancies and pay cuts.

CY said implementation of the plan was expected to lead to a drastic reduction in operating losses and have a favourable impact on the company’s long term viability.

The airline employs about 1,000 people and the restructuring plan, based on proposals by Air France-KLM, has called for cutting staff by 407.

CY has asked for €73 million to implement the restructuring plan.

Parliament begrudgingly made €16.3 million available to CY in December as part of a share capital increase. The state has a stake of almost 70 per cent in the airline. 

WE NEED to get over this irrational fixation with keeping the semi-governmental organisations (SGOs) in state hands. There is not a single, rational, economic argument to support this fixation cultivated by AKEL, which is ideologically in favour of state control, and mindlessly supported by all the political parties, for fear of losing votes and influence.

Yet the opportunity for privatising these state monopolies has been provided by the memorandum of understanding which includes a provision on the issue. Rather than seizing it our political parties have been in denial, either claiming the provision did not exist (AKEL) or that it could be avoided (DISY, DIKO). It could be avoided if the bailout amount was low enough to ensure a sustainable public debt, argued President Nicos Anastasiades, in the final debate before his election.

He had to say this because during the campaign, he visited one of the SGOs with DIKO leader Marios Garoyian and publicly pledged that he would not agree to the privatisations. This was a big mistake by Anastasiades, who should have known better than to repeat the Christofias mantra on privatisation at a time when the EU was expecting a change of stance from the new Cyprus government. Now he is a prisoner of his electoral rhetoric, in danger of losing the trust of the EU if he sticks to his guns.

Finance minister Michalis Sarris raised the issue last Friday when he said that strategic investors could be found for CyTA, while making general remarks about the need to restrict state ownership of organisations. Citing this remark, AKEL accused Anastasiades of deceiving the voters and forcing the new president to clarify that Sarris was out of step with government policy. 

Sarris knew that a gesture was needed on the part of the government to show the EU that it meant business and agreeing to the EU demand for privatisations would be a positive sign. Instead, Anastasiades is sounding like Christofias, who was prepared not to sign a bailout and condemn the state to bankruptcy in order to keep CyTA and the EAC under state control. Does the new president also believe that safeguarding the provocative pay and privileges enjoyed by a few thousand pampered workers at the grossly inefficient SGOs a legitimate reason not to agree a memorandum?

The fact is there is no face-saving solution for Anastasiades, who put himself in the corner with his election pledge. And he made matters worse at the weekend when he promised that workers at SGOs should not worry about their jobs. What strategic investor would buy a share of CyTA, while the state keeps a majority shareholding and prohibits redundancies, when everyone knows that the organisation employs twice as many workers as it needs? 

The president needs to get over this SGO fixation, even if it means going back on his election promise, because the priority is the signing of the bailout and not the privileges of SGO workers.