Yiannis Karousos considers Averof Neophytou’s departure through the procedures of the Democratic Rally to be a foregone conclusion, while noting that Mr. Neophytou had informed the leadership that he would be absent on Friday during the meeting of the DISY Political Bureau.
Speaking on the “Alpha News” program, DISY Vice President Yiannis Karousos reiterated his position that the Democratic Rally should have had its candidate by September.
“By September, we should have already had our candidate for the presidential election, and we would have avoided many of the issues we’re facing today.”
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When asked to respond to comments and reactions that DISY rushed to set the process in motion following recent developments, Mr. Karousos maintains that the party has already been delayed.
“I had already expressed my position to the party’s collective bodies immediately after the parliamentary elections, and I had said that we needed to complete these procedures by September. And I made the following arguments: First, the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, never stopped campaigning; therefore, he is in the midst of a full-fledged election campaign, while we said at the end that we would not begin our own procedures, out of respect for the possibility of developments in the Cyprus issue. However, the President of the Republic is proceeding with his campaign as usual. We shouldn’t have given him that advantage. The second reason was to preempt any developments that might have arisen—whether within the party or involving various opponents—because we had to wrap this up as soon as possible.”
“When there’s a lot of time, factions and internal divisions tend to form—that’s only natural,” he adds, noting that the third and most important factor is that the DISY candidate has 16 months at his disposal to prepare his governance program and communicate it to the public.
When asked if he had observed that what he himself had denounced—that DISY officials were present at the Presidential Palace—was indeed happening, he states:
“I’ll be clear. When the Democratic Rally presents its candidate, I will be among those who ensure that this does not happen. That is why I have called on everyone who participates in the collective bodies—I’m not talking about ordinary people— just to make that clear, because some people misunderstand—when I say this, I’m referring to Democratic Rally members who might choose to make other decisions. I’m talking about party officials. Once this election campaign begins, no one should be allowed to be at the Presidential Palace in the morning and at Pindarou Street by noon. We lost the 2023 elections for this very reason.”
When asked whether the individuals he was referring to had participated in the Political Bureau and expressed their views, he replied:
“I saw many people I know who supported Nikos Christodoulides, and it is now clear that they will support the Democratic Rally’s position. In fact, it was also mentioned in the Political Bureau— and Giorgos Pamporidis said quite rightly that everyone except the President of the Republic is welcome to come back and support the Democratic Rally’s candidacy. That is why, once we’ve made our choice and concluded this process—and we have our candidate—we must ensure that we do not experience the betrayals and double-dealing that occurred in 2023, because Averof Neophytou essentially ran his campaign alone back then and received 26%. Just imagine if the party had been united at that time.”
He makes it clear that he stood by Mr. Neophytou and supported him passionately and vigorously, because he believed both in his candidacy and in the fact that he was the party’s candidate.
When asked if he spoke with Averof Neophytou and whether they discussed whether he would submit his candidacy through the Democratic Rally’s procedures, he replies:
“I take it for granted that Averof Neophytou, our former president and our former presidential candidate, will come and participate in the Democratic Rally’s procedures. We support the institution of this party. We fought and struggled to adhere to the party bylaws. Therefore, I take it for granted.”
When asked to clarify whether this is his personal opinion or whether it is what Mr. Neophytou himself conveyed to him, he reiterated that he takes it for granted that once he becomes a candidate, he will adhere to DISY’s procedures.
Regarding Averof Neophytou’s absence abroad on the day of the DISY Political Bureau meeting, Mr. Karousos points out that he had informed the leadership that he would be abroad.
“And I want to send a message to everyone that there must be respect—for everyone, from everyone. Something I didn’t like at the Political Bureau was that someone criticized Averof Neophytou for not being there. He was abroad for personal reasons.”
Regarding the Political Bureau’s decision to slightly extend the proceedings, and when asked what concerns him about what might happen, he emphasizes that they do not want any further turmoil.
“We certainly don’t want any more turmoil. Everyone needs to maintain the appropriate level of decorum; we need to tone things down. All of us need to engage in self-criticism regarding everything that has happened in recent months. I include myself in this, as well as the entire leadership and everyone involved in this process. We must show that we want to unite, not divide. We must call on everyone to come together. We will also take the initiative, as leadership, to meet with all the candidates or anyone who is interested.”
When asked whether the leadership has all the facts at its disposal regarding the day after the election, he answers in the affirmative and states that they are entering the process with optimism that they will win the presidential election.
“We won’t even entertain the idea that we won’t make it to the second round. First and foremost, we must make the right choices. The choice now lies with the grassroots, and my hope is that in ’23—when many complained that the grassroots weren’t consulted, or that the grassroots didn’t want Averof and that the Supreme Council was calling the shots— even though Averof Neophytou had proposed to Nikos Christodoulides that we consult the grassroots, a proposal that Christodoulides himself rejected. Now that argument no longer holds. We’re going to the base as indicated, and I believe the members will take all of this into account—the chances of making it to the second round, the chances of winning.”
Mr. Karousos notes that registered members—numbering just under 50,000—are eligible to vote, provided they registered at least 90 days before the election.
When asked about the possibility that Nikos Christodoulides’ supporters might back the “easier” opponent, Mr. Karousos questions just how easy that would be with 50,000 members.
When asked to respond to reports that AKEL was using the DISY membership registry to support Mavroyiannis, Mr. Karousos replied that he himself did not have access to the registry and that he gained access after his election as Vice President, unlike Nicos Christodoulides.
