ONLY members of the simpletons’ club would have thought there was a one-in-a-million chance that the deputy attorney-general Savvas Angelides would have heeded calls for his resignation and stepped down from a post that is his ownership for another 16 years.
You do not give up a post that offers you status, power, a top salary, a huge pension, job security of reinforced steel and prospects becoming the top dog because you made a complete mess of a straightforward case and had the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rule that your decisions sucked big-time (it was phrased more politely).
Angelides had decided to suspend the prosecution of a Disy councilor and parliamentary candidate in 2021, who had been accused of rape by a woman, 10 years after it had allegedly taken place. Being a Disy guy himself there were many implying that the nolle prosequi he issued was based on rusfetological rather than legal reasons.
At the news conference he gave on Wednesday he explained that he suspended the prosecution because he found that the woman’s testimony was unreliable. The ECtHR did not buy this pathetic explanation, so why was he still using it in his defence?
THE MAIN reason for the news conference was for the blundering deputy AG, with the AG by his side in a show of support, to explain why he had no intention of giving up his cushy, well-paid, state job that he cannot be moved from until 2041.
In a written announcement he issued, immediately after the ECtHR decision, he said he took responsibility, but when this was pointed out to him on Wednesday, he came up with the following: “If I were a politician, taking responsibility would mean resigning, but I am not a politician.” He is just a state official who cannot resign and lose all the perks of his post.
He offered an even more convincing reason for ignoring calls for his resignation – these were a “direct threat to justice.” This was not as stupid as it sounded, the implication being that courts would be afraid of making a decision, in case the mob disagreed and called for a judge’s resignation.
Then again, is a blundering deputy AG, whose decisions are lambasted by the ECtHR, not a direct threat to justice?
CALLS for Angelides’ resignation were made by Akel and, predictably, by Odysseas, who has an ongoing feud with him and considers him responsible, to a large extent, for his sacking. Odysseas had also reported Angelides to the anti-corruption authority in the past.
Akel attacked the government for not sacking Angelides, something it had no authority to do, and Disy, while Odysseas directed most of his fire to the latter. And in his trademark holier-than-thou way, he slammed Disy for not calling for Angelides’ resignation.
He has now taken it upon himself to tell rival parties the most morally virtuous line to take on public issues. It would be a bit rich for Disy to call for the resignation of Angelides for suspending the prosecution of one of its own, even if the party had nothing to do with the decision.
MINISTER of justice and public order, Marios Hartsiotis, the closet Elamite in the government, also announced he would take responsibility for some cockups of the police such as the escape of a convicted murderer, without resigning. And he was a politician.
Has Hartsiotis fallen out of favour with the Prez or has he gone on holiday? It seemed bizarre that the Prez undertook to tackle the problem of petty crime on the Finikoudes seafront in Larnaca, which was blown out of proportion by the government.
So concerned was the Prez about soaring crime (thefts and violence) in the sleepy town, that he dropped everything and made an impromptu visit to Larnaca CID on Friday morning, where he met the chief of police and the Larnaca police chief. Hartsiotis was not invited for unknown reasons.
The crime-buster Prez, who said the trouble was caused by young migrants took decisive action. From 8pm on Friday night, 20 men from the police’s rapid response mobile action unit (MMAD) were guarding Finikoudes and stayed there until 4am. Law and order had been restored in crime city.
THERE was no MMAD to protect the Disy offices in Limassol which were broken into by some of our very own social justice warriors that call themselves Antifa. These lefty losers vandalised the offices, emptying drawers and spray-painting slogans on the walls, to protest against the bill banning the covering of faces at public protests.
Disy took the action very seriously, seeing it as perfect excuse for some pointless pontificating as it took the role of victim of the forces of evil, “who, with their behaviour, poison society and political life.”
“Anarchy and chaos struck with the aim of silencing moderation and rationality. To create a climate of terrorism directed at the only political force that stands as a bulwark against toxicity, polarisation and fanaticism.”
Of course, the Antifa terrorism and vandalism would never have materialised if one of the Disy staff remembered to activate the office alarm. If the alarm had gone off, the Antifa warriors would have run away.
DORIA Varoshiotou, whose service as a judge was terminated after her two-year probation was over at the end of last month, was done a big favour by the judges who took the decision.
Immediately after the announcement, she was declared a ‘victim’ of the sinister judicial cabal that wanted to punish her for not being one of the boys, and a ‘hero’ for standing up to them by Phil’s virtue-signaling columnist, Giorgos Kallinikou, who can make and break careers nowadays.
Doria became the darling of the media and especially Kallinikou because, as the judge in the Thanasis inquest (the third), she ruled the guardsman’s death was caused by “criminal activity” overturning the verdict of suicide that had stood for 19 years.
Her popularity soared after the termination of her services – she achieved Odysseas status – and reports suggest she is considering standing in the next year’s parliamentary elections. Logically, she should join her fellow traveller’s party, Alma, but I hear she is from an Akel family so she could stand for the reds.
ANOTHER Cyprob non-event under the UNSG Antoni Guterres, also known as the ‘informal five plus one conference’ will be held in New York this week, with expectations of anything meaningful or constructive being agreed well below zero.
Reports suggest that the opening of a couple of crossings might be announced, to show that the UN’s latest initiative and the re-appointment of a personal envoy was not a colossal waste of time, money and resources. No smart gambler would bet on this.
One change that our side chose to ignore is that the UN have been won over to the Turkish argument that BBF is now out of the question and other options must be considered.
Envoy Maria Angela Holguin said as much in an interview with Politis. She said, “one of the consequences of failure at Crans Montana was that BBF no longer constitutes a common reference point for the two sides.” It was a diplomatic way of telling our Prez to forget BBF.
I suspect he is more than happy to do this, which is why the government said nothing about Holguin’s views. In the past, if any UN official dared to say something so controversial we would be calling for their blood.
WHEN the House plenum was discussing the farcical bills about the multiple pensions (which might affect the pockets of future generations but none of the current self-serving crop of politicians) Akel deputy Irini Charalambidou proposed her own bill.
It was the smartest and most effective way of dealing with multiple pensions. Pensions that exceeded €70,000 per year would be taxed at 90 per cent. Needless to say, deputies voted against this bill, which could have been implemented from next year, and had been given the go ahead by the tax department boss.
That there are public parasites who collect more than 70 grand a year in state pensions for taking no risk and producing nothing in their entire working life is not just shocking, it is a crime against humanity. These are the guys the Antifa social justice warriors should be terrorising.
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