"In an ocean full of sharks, you cannot be a goldfish," Averof Neophytou said shortly before revealing his intention to take on Niko Christodoulides in a vote. Through democratic procedures the party's Base to decide who can be the President of DISY and the party's candidate for the Presidency of the Republic. And this is the last chance for unity in DISY.[/B] But it may also be the last chance for Nikos Christodoulides to contest the presidency with the votes of the party to which he belongs. I wonder if we will see him pick up this glove on Monday?
[/P]Before rushing to answer the question, let's examine what exactly the DISY President is proposing. There is a popular saying that big fish are caught with small bait. Taking a risk, Averof Neophytou has chosen to provide a very simple solution to the underlying problem plaguing DISY. Let the 51,000 members of the party decide. The winner takes it all, the loser loses 2023 and - if he is in the mood for political culture - applauds from the podium.
To explain the rationale behind his decision, Averof Neophytou spoke openly for the first time about the attitude of Nikos Christodoulides. In short, he referred to a dark battle, to undermining and blackmail. He said that the Foreign Minister is avoiding being officially revealed so that he can tread in both boats at the same time: "of both party legitimacy and the independent antisystemic course."
And yet... he knew
The proposal took many people by surprise, but not the Foreign Secretary.[/B] Reports say that the President of DISY had mentioned the proposal in a private discussion he had in the background with Nicos Christodoulides.
At that time the discussion ended without result and the proposal fell on deaf ears. The Minister insisted on his intention to be a candidate for the Presidency of the Republic in any case, citing measurements that reflect his popularity in society.
The President of the Republic was of course also aware of the proposal, who has been watching the internal party dispute come to a head with discomfort. At the level of public discourse he attempted to keep an equal distance, but those who are close to him know very well that the scales are clearly tipped towards Averoff.
And now?
Returning to the question of the first paragraph, we will see that even the Foreign Minister himself does not know exactly what he will do on Monday. Averoff's proposal has put both feet in one shoe for him, as he knows that if he does not accept it he will be exposed in the eyes of the alarmists and his popularity will lose points. And it doesn't take much analysis to understand where those points will end up.
On the other hand, not responding would give him points coming from the so-called middle ground. Except that on their own, those points are not enough to achieve his goal and move to the hill. It is with these concerns that he spends the weekend, studying with close associates the options before them. In essence, he does not intend to position himself before noon on Monday, with his presence or absence from the nomination process on the third floor of Pindarou.
As of this moment, it remains unknown whether the Christodoulides camp has secured the necessary nomination forms from the office of the party's Director of Administration and Organization.
In any case, whatever his decision, he is well aware that he is in his last days as foreign minister. In this field too, developments are expected in the coming week, with the presidential office preparing the ground for his replacement.
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