Let me begin by saying that today's ceremony, in addition to the self-evident purpose it serves, is a reflection of how in practice, with exemplary coordination, work, cooperation and within set timeframes, solutions can be found and solutions can be found immediately and ambitious projects of this magnitude can be launched for the benefit of the public interest. Whereupon, before anything else, I would like to pay tribute to all the officials of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works and the Department of Public Works, as well as the Ministry of Finance and other relevant state agencies, who in close cooperation with the First Administrative Officer of the Legal Service Dr. Niki Paschalidou and the officials of the Legal Service Administration, whom I also warmly thank, worked to overcome problems and with exemplary coordination to map the needs of the Legal Service, to "translate" them into specifications, to announce the open architectural competition and at the present moment, we are just before the start of construction of the new, privately owned building of the Legal Service, which is expected to begin in July 2023.
Similarly, I would also like to address many thanks to my friend the Minister of Transport, Communications and Works, Mr. Yiannis Karousos, whose unconditional support and assistance was a catalyst for us to be where we are today. Friend John, thank you for embracing our efforts to reform the Legal Service by helping to ensure that the reform trajectory that we, together with the Assistant Attorney General of the Republic, embarked on for our Service continues unhindered, which clearly "passes" through meeting our housing needs. Because today the picture of the infrastructure of the Legal Service of the Republic is made up of serious housing deficiencies, namely, obsolete buildings in need of constant and costly maintenance and repair, with an urgent need to upgrade the security of the facilities, and with the dispersal of functions, Sections and Archives in separate buildings. These dysfunctions are a serious impediment to the smoother, more effective and efficient working operation that we seek to have in our Service. Consequently, the benefits of the construction of the new building are manifold since, in addition to the very serious issue resolved for us by ending the dispersal of staff, it achieves savings in public expenditure through the application of economies of scale, improves working conditions for staff and ensures the continued smooth running of the Service so that, in conjunction with a number of other reform measures that we have been introducing over the last two years, key challenges can be managed more effectively. I also congratulate the architectural firm Athos Dikaios and Associates Architects, to whom the second prize is awarded.
Thanking again warmly all those who are working together and in unison to implement this development project, I conclude by saying that our intention and effort in the Legal Service is to transform our Service into a modern and flexible organisation in the near future. I am glad that the Executive has "shared" the necessity of meeting our housing needs and has joined us.
Thank you.
(MΛ)
Contents of this article including associated images are owned by PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
