An individual who had been declared a deserter by his unit in 1974 was receiving an honorary allowance without ever having been a prisoner of war, while a second individual received the same allowance using another person’s identification information. These are two of the six cases documented in the Audit Office’s report.
“The audit was conducted following a complaint by the 1974 Prisoners of War Association, alleging that benefits were being paid to individuals who were not prisoners of war.”
Giota Michael – Spokesperson for the Audit Office
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Chaos with Lists
By cross-referencing the data of the 852 recipients of the benefit with the records of the Cyprus Red Cross and the Ministry of Defense’s Prisoner of War Registry, the Audit Office identified 15 cases that were not listed in any registry.
Upon examination of the 15 cases, it was found that for 6 individuals receiving the allowance, no evidence was found that they had ever been prisoners of war. In fact, for two individuals, there is no indication whatsoever that they even served in the National Guard during the period of the Turkish invasion.
“A full re-examination of the records should be conducted and cross-referenced with the lists. To this day, there is no single, complete, and verifiable data source.”
Giota Michael
“At the committee’s next session on Tuesday, all relevant officials will be summoned so that recommendations can be made.”
Nikos Kettiros – Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Refugees
In any case, the Audit Office’s findings raise questions about how the YKA confirmed the prisoner status of dozens of individuals without verifying their identities.
See the report by Christoforos Nestoros:
