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- Ελληνικά
The work that the Government has accomplished is fully in line with the goal we have set for the improvement of the everyday life of citizens, Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letibiotis said today, noting that "we have a historic responsibility to implement the President's governance programme".
Speaking to reporters at the Presidential Palace, and asked to comment on criticisms by opposition parties through posts in relation to references made by the President of the Republic during his yesterday's inter-camera interview, the Spokesman said: "Yesterday, on the occasion of the completion of one year in office, the President of the Republic had the opportunity to present, through a brief message and then by answering questions from journalists, the achievements of the Government in its first year.
We believe that the work that the Government has done is fully in line with the goal we have set, the improvement of the daily life of citizens.
We have a historic responsibility to implement the President's programme of governance and with this as our compass, we will continue resolutely to implement the President's programme of governance in its entirety.
Regarding the reactions we have seen, some of the postings were before the interlocution was even completed. To be precise, it was before the first round of questions had even been completed.
The General Secretary of AKEL chose to advance the answers and his own position before even allowing the President of the Republic to respond.
We have also seen the convergence of DISY-AKEL views. And we understand that we are entering an election period, but we must remember that above all, it is the progress of our country, the implementation of specific projects, specific measures.
We, as the Government, the President of the Republic himself, remain committed to this goal.
The President of the Republic himself mentioned yesterday and acknowledged the contribution of the legislature in the implementation of several of these measures.
We call on all political forces to rise to the occasion, to work together, with the sole objective and sole consideration of the well-understood interests of society, and we are sure that society will judge this with the judgment that has so far judged all the actions of the Government and all political forces.
We will continue to walk on the same responsible path, which currently keeps our country and has been upgraded to the investment grade by all the Rating Agencies, which the European Commission's forecasts for 2024 rank Cyprus second in terms of growth rate for 2024, That we have achieved in one year the migration issue, from being the biggest issue of concern to the Cypriot society, today, for the first time, Cyprus has achieved for the first time that the number of departures is higher than the number of arrivals. A Government which, in just one year, has successfully managed issues that have been of concern to society for years, such as the ATA, the quarters, the issue of disposals, VAT on first homes and many other issues, precisely through our willingness to cooperate sincerely.
In this very same way, with this very same commitment, the President of the Republic and all the members of the Cabinet, unhindered and with all our efforts, will continue to work to meet the very high expectations of our fellow citizens who, this time last year, gave a strong popular mandate to President Christodoulides until 2028."
He added: "It's a bit of an oxymoronic positioning. On the one hand, the General Secretary of AKEL, who through his characteristic phrase 'business as usual', does not understand what he is calling us to. If he considers 'business as usual' to be the policies followed by the Christofias government, then this is at the discretion of society, where ten years later these policies are still alive as nightmares. I remind you of the €350 tax on companies, which was abolished in 2024, because in 2011 a tax had to be imposed in order to find money for the state coffers.
At the same time, DISY should answer us, specifically, on which policies it disagrees with the President of the Republic. Is it on the handling of the Cyprus problem, where after seven years of prolonged stalemate, we have succeeded as Cyprus in appointing the personal envoy of the UN Secretary General? Is it in terms of initiatives that position our country as a pillar of stability in the region? Is it in terms of policies that reduce public debt, making the 60% debt reduction target for 2026 achievable? Is it about policies that reduce inflation?
Is it about policies that, while announcing packages of €256 million in the form of a "European Investment Bank" (EIF) package, will reduce inflation? for support to society and a very ambitious and innovative project, such as "Photovoltaics for All", at the same time the country's growth rate and public finances, through responsible and prudent policies, are keeping our country safe for the future?
Therefore, criticism should be accompanied by the necessary arguments, well-founded, so that we can be beneficial and productive in our cooperation with each other.
With all due respect to all political forces, we seek cooperation, we seek criticism, and what we want is that through this cooperation the best possible benefit results, where the Cypriot and Cypriot citizen will be at the centre."
In response to a journalist's remark that the Ministers will also give press conferences, as has been announced, the Spokesman said: "The programme of press conferences will be announced in the coming days by each and every one of the Ministers and Deputy Ministers of the Government. There will be about two press conferences per week, while maintaining the interest of the press, and they will take a detailed account of the first year of government, as well as an analysis of what the Government has already announced from the President's Annual Plan, which the President plans to implement in 2024.
It is within the framework of transparency, but also of accountability from President Christodoulides, that the members of the Cabinet will also make these press statements and it is something that, after the posting of all the Ministries' action plans, will also be done through press conferences, which will start next Monday with the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth."
To another question, the Spokesman said that the President yesterday "acknowledged the decisive contribution of the House of Representatives on critical issues, a cooperation with the political forces that is not only self-evident but also imperative. We, with all due respect to the political powers, will continue to cooperate, because this cooperation between the executive and the legislature contributes both to timely decision-making and to the optimization of any decisions taken."
(PM/MS/EATH)
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