Excerpts from an interview with the General Secretary of the C.C. of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou

 

• What is at stake in these elections is ridding our country and people from DISY and its candidates
• Mavroyiannis will be in the second round”

Sunday, 16 October 2022 “Fileleftheros” newspaper

– QUESTION: The stakes are high for AKEL in the upcoming presidential election. The estimates so far have you losing the battle. What’s your opinion?

– SS: First of all, let me say that the stakes are crucial first and foremost for Cyprus. These elections will decide whether Cyprus will continue to slide down further in deadlocks and scandals caused by the ten-year DISY government or whether our country will change course. This is the biggest challenge of the elections.

I wonder on what data are some people rushing to draw conclusions. I invite those who are in a hurry to take a look at past presidential elections in which various candidates were declared winners on the basis of opinion polls who eventually not only did not win, but did not even make it to the second round. For example, in 2008, Tasos Papadopoulos was presented as the favourite according to all the polls, but did not make it to the second round. In 2013, as in 2018, others were presented as favourites to make it to the second round, but again they didn’t. It’s too early to make a prediction.

Speaking about the candidacy of Mr. Mavroyiannis, which AKEL supports, we are very pleased with its development and the steady improvement it is showing in the polls. Let us not forget that this candidacy has only a two-month campaign behind it, while the other main candidacies have been campaigning for several years.

– QUESTION: So do you think there can be a reversal of the situation as it’s been portrayed so far?

– SS: I wouldn’t call it a turnaround because the situation is still very fluid. You reverse something when it is stable and consolidated. The majority of people are now starting to get involved in the elections. And when I say involved with the elections, I mean that everyone should put the stakes of the elections before themselves and decide what to do. What we are pleased to note is that since Mavroyiannis has been in the polls, he has been steadily improving his position and trending upwards. So in the process of the formation of the political process, Andreas Mavroyiannis has very good prospects.

– QUESTION: So do you think that AKEL will manage to rally its voters around the candidacy of Andreas Mavroyiannis? And how do you explain the fact that after a decade of opposition, there is this difficulty in rallying voters?

– SS: Of course, AKEL will have a very high percentage in the rallying of its electoral base. I must say that comparing the current polls with those carried out in 2018 during the same period, the data for AKEL was roughly the same in terms of its rallying. But in the end, AKEL recorded, as in 2013, a very high percentage rallying [of its forces]. The main reason is the one I have mentioned before, namely that the election scene is evolving and the majority of people are just now starting to get into the logic of the presidential elections.

AKEL will have a high percentage of rallying its voters in order to get rid of the DISY government and to change things in the country for the better. For this to happen, we need a progressive President and a progressive government. Andreas Mavroyiannis brings together all those necessary characteristics that can help put Cyprus on the path to growth, prosperity and progress.

– QUESTION: But there is a difficulty in rallying voters….

– SS: Low rates of rallying of voters are a general characteristic of the political scene in modern times, especially when we are quite far from the elections. This is not a phenomenon that exists only in Cyprus, but across Europe and internationally as well. The poor socio-economic situation of a large section of societies as a result of anti-social policies being implemented pushes the poor and low-income strata of society to the margins of society and many of them end up not going to the polls.

What is certain is that those suffering from the situation created by the DISY government’s policies over the past decade, if they do not respond with their vote, they and many others too will continue to suffer and their problems will intensify.

It is for this reason that we urge people to follow developments and try to find out what each candidate and the parties backing them are doing and what they stand for on the various issues. And of course, the people should go into the process of judging the credibility of every proposal that is being put forward on the campaign trail. They should pose the following question to themselves: given that the two candidates of the DISY government, namely Averof Neophytou and Nikos Christodoulides, didn’t solve the problems they face for ten years, how and why will they solve them now?

– QUESTION: AKEL is reported to be pushing Andreas Mavroyiannis to be more dynamic and aggressive in his statements. Why? Do you consider that you have a difficulty in identifying the party’s voters with the candidate?

– SS: That is not exactly the case. You understand that each candidate has his/her own characteristics and each election campaign team makes its own plan on how the campaign is going to proceed. Andreas Mavroyiannis is less recognisable than the other two main candidates and he started his election campaign much later.

For that reason, the first period of the campaign was used to introduce himself to society and at the same time to meet with organised groups, to listen to their positions and thoughts in order to formulate his own election programme. According to the plan that Mr. Mavroyiannis’ campaign team has prepared, he will now enter the thick of the electoral battle, where he will face his main rivals.  Consequently, it is not true what they say that AKEL is pushing Mavroyiannis to become more confrontational.

The candidacy of Mr. Mavroyiannis is the de facto principal candidate of the opposition and the only option that can put an end to the DISY government. This does not mean that he will come out shouting. It is not the tone of a candidate’s voice that shows the magnitude of his/her opposition. It is the content of the positions and proposals put forward. This is where one of the new elements that Andreas Mavroyiannis brings to political life lies. This new stand has to do with the style and ethos of his campaign. Mr. Mavroyiannis does not troll or undermine his opponents. He does not promise everything to everyone and does not claim to hold a magic wand.

Rather than issuing empty pledges, rather than debating in loud tones and engaging in noisy petty-in fighting, Andreas Mavroyiannis says: “Let’s meet and talk, let’s put things down to see what the situation in Cyprus is, what is needed and who has the credibility to deliver what our country needs.” You asked me about the people of the left. Well, the people of the left, along with the vast majority of society, are very unhappy, they are angry about the bad state of affairs and the erroneous situation they are experiencing. We don’t say that, people are saying it in the polls.

The people of the Left, but also every logical person, knows that it is not possible for key essential cogs of the government [Averof and Christodoulides], who already declare themselves to be the successors of the Anastasiades government’s policies, to change things and provide solutions for the people. In this case, what Einstein said is absolutely true, namely that you cannot solve a problem with the materials of a problem. You have to change materials, you have to change policies and approaches.

– QUESTION: How do you explain the fact – according to the polls – that there are also losses from your party towards the candidacy of Nikos Christodoulides?

– SS: Christodoulides has been campaigning for five years, while we didn’t have a candidate. If you look at the polls, you will see that since AKEL has taken its decision on the presidential elections, the outflow of voters from AKEL to Nikos Christodoulides has decreased very much and there is a big return of voters. This leads us to believe that the outflows will be reduced to a minimum, we will have a high percentage in the rallying of our voters and that we will have maximum inflows from other party spectrums towards the candidacy of Mr. Mavroyiannis.

AKEL is not isolated – Our door is open

– QUESTION: The objective of gaining support for the candidacy of Mavroyiannis from parties other than AKEL has not been achieved. Why?

– SS: Our objective of forging a unity of forces was and is indeed our objective. That is precisely what we tried very hard to achieve as AKEL. The efforts we made with DIKO and other political forces to agree on a common candidate on the basis of a common programme are well documented. Why this goal was not achieved is for everyone to judge on the basis of the decisions taken by each party.

We have not abandoned the goal of uniting forces that want and are struggling for progressive change. This was precisely one of the reasons why we ultimately supported the independent candidacy of Andreas Mavroyiannis. He has a very good track record as a public servant serving Cyprus and its cause with consistency and successfully.

At the same time, AKEL is addressing the other parties proposing a person they know and have a very good opinion of. This is exactly why, when we took the decision to support Andreas Mavroyiannis, we again addressed the parties that declare they are seeking change, to come and change things together. Unfortunately, they took other decisions and choices.

The candidacy of Andreas Mavroyiannis transcends party boundaries, given that he is a genuine independent candidate, and for that reason it is easier for voters to support him. I must say that it is with great satisfaction that we see that so many people and former officials of other political parties are embracing and supporting the candidacy of Andreas Mavroyiannis. One sample of this fact was the rally held at Freedom Square. There will be many other figures and personalities [announcing their support for A.Mavroyiannis] whose names will subsequently be made public. This gives us additional optimism that his candidacy is a winning candidacy.

– QUESTION: The picture that emerges is that AKEL is isolated, despite being the biggest opposition party. Doesn’t that worry you?

– SS: Everyone chooses to take their own path and is accountable to society. We are not isolated and we will continue to keep our door open both to other parties and to civil society, social organisations, movements and personalities. But I repeat that forging cooperation is like marriage. You cannot decide on a marriage alone, it takes two to agree to a marriage.

– QUESTION: Why do these positive decisions not exist?

– SS: The other parties should be asked why these positive decisions don’t exist. They should also be asked the following: how can they talk about change when they have decided to support a candidate who declares himself to be a continuator of the Anastasiades-DISY government?

How is it possible that these political parties can consider this Government to be the most corrupt ever and yet end up supporting a candidate who was not only a member of the DISY Government, but was harshly criticised for issues that he personally was responsible for?

If you look, for example, at what the parties that are currently backing the candidacy of Nikos Christodoulides had said on the Famagusta issue or on the issue of the imposition of sanctions {by the EU}, many questions arise with regards on what specific basis they are supporting his candidacy. It is their right to do so, but the questions about the oxymoron of the choice they have made are not easy to answer.

What we invite people to do is to reflect on how change will be achieved with those who are claiming to be continuers of this government.

What is at stake in these elections is getting rid of the DISY government

– QUESTION: Three candidates from the Right and centre-right. Would you venture a prediction as to who will be in the second round? And since you will for sure say one of them will be Andreas Mavroyiannis, tell me who you consider will be in the second round?

– SS: Andreas Mavroyiannis will definitely be in the second round. We are interested in the candidate whom we support, and who will his runner-up be in the second round is not our concern. The second round of presidential elections is a different election battle.

Now, with regard to the reference to the fact that there are three candidates from the Right, let me just say this: Andreas Mavroyiannis does not belong to any party and it is arbitrary to classify him as belonging to the right-wing. A.Mavroyiannis must be judged by the positions he expresses. Positions with a social orientation and in a progressive direction. He is a man who puts his country, society and working people above all else.

On key and topical issues his positions coincide with those of the trade union movement, such as for example the abolition of the 12% penalty imposed on those opting to retire prematurely at 63, the restoration and expansion of the Cost of Living Allowance so that it can cover all working people, putting an end to work on Sundays, etc.

Averof Neophytou and Nikos Christodoulides are against these policies. So, we expect that the candidates will be judged on the basis of their positions and not on any arbitrary categorizations. For example, what is their position on the National Health Scheme or on what the candidates’ positions are in relation to the solution of the Cyprus problem.

From there onwards, it is the responsibility of the people to take a stand.

For us there are no dilemmas. The stakes of the presidential elections are to bring change. To rid the country and people from those who have led our country to be discredited across the world, as well as to rid ourselves from the ‘proud’ continuers of the current government. To rid ourselves from the ruling DISU Democratic Rally party, with two candidates who are in fact two sides of the same coin.

– QUESTION: Couldn’t AKEL have proposed a left-wing candidate?

– SS: AKEL could of course have supported a left-wing candidate – either with its General Secretary or with another person. But it did not do so because AKEL weighed up the prospects of success at the current juncture and on the basis of the current balance of forces. This also answers another malicious statement made by certain forces and circles that suggest that AKEL supposedly wants to lose the elections. If AKEL wanted to lose the elections, it could have done so in a more heroic way. That is to say, to support a candidate of its own, to invest in the arena of party patriotism, but in the end to lose.

So my answer is precisely because we want to win the election, that’s why we are supporting a person who can rally and unite forces and transcend party lines.

– QUESTION: So in the second round, who are you going to forge cooperation with?

– SS: We’ll talk about the second round when the time comes.

– QUESTION: So in the scenario that in the second round it’s Andreas Mavroyiannis with Nikos Christodoulides, would you forge cooperation with DISY?

– SS: We are now talking and working for the first round. Any other discussion is both premature and meaningless.