THE president cancelled the controversial appointment of Spyros Stavrinakis to the post of deputy Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) governor, the government spokesman said yesterday.
“Spyros Stavrinakis’ act of appointment to the position of deputy CBC governor has been rescinded and the appointment in question is terminated,” Christos Stylianides said.
Stavrinakis, a senior CBC director, was appointed deputy governor by former president Demetris Christofias 13 days before the February 17 presidential elections, which the latter did not contest.
Christofias claimed the appointment was necessary due to the Central Bank’s increasing obligations, rejecting suggestions that it was politically motivated.
The position is reserved in the constitution for Turkish Cypriots and had been vacant for the past 50 years.
The appointment was made possible by invoking the Law of Necessity, passed after the Turkish Cypriots abandoned parliament and their positions in the government in the 1960s, basically to enable the state to function properly even if certain acts conflicted with the constitution.
Article 118 of the Constitution, drafted in 1960, states: “The President and Vice-President of the Republic shall jointly appoint two capable and suitable persons as Governor and deputy Governor of the Bank of Issue, in compliance with the rule that the Governor and deputy Governor shall not hail from the same community.”
The article goes on to say that the same applies in the event the Bank of Issue is converted to a Central Bank.
The deputy attorney-general and deputy auditor-general positions have also been filled in the past using the same law.
The government said the emergency conditions cited by the Law of Necessity to justify its use “essentially do not exist” thus the appointment could be rescinded.
President Nicos Anastasiades had said he would revoke the appointment if elected.
Stavrinakis, who had been sidelined by the previous governor, Athanasios Orphanides, was upgraded as soon as the current CBC Governor, Panicos Demetriades, took over last year.
Former ruling party AKEL described the government’s decision as irresponsible, wondering if it had taken into consideration the amount of work the CBC currently has to deal with. “In such a critical moment for the Cypriot economy, the government chose to act irresponsibly, simply to serve its expediencies,” AKEL said.