ELAM is flesh of DISY’s flesh
Statement by the General Secretary of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou
23 May 2024, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia
Yesterday’s outburst by the President of DISY party can be explained easily. With the elections approaching, DISY remembered that it is supposed to be in opposition and that they supposedly have major differences with far-right ELAM. But if DISY is panicking and if it is unable to articulate a political discourse, this does not permit them to reproduce the vulgar theory of the “two extremes” or to attribute positions to AKEL that it has never supported. Such as, for example, the claim that AKEL supports the policy of ”open borders”, which of course is a blatant lie.
The whole of Cyprus knows that ELAM acts as a reserve force for DISY, since it is flesh of DISY’s own flesh. After all, Nicos Anastasiades, Nicos Christodoulides and Anita Demetriou were all elected to office with the votes of the far-right ELAM party. High-ranking members of DISY have publicly admitted that [DISY President] Anita Demetriou was elected to the Presidency of the House of Representatives as a result of an agreement between the two with reciprocal rewards given to ELAM.
The saddest thing, of course, is that to this day DISY and its leadership refuse to understand that the problem with the far-right is not that it is stealing votes and members from DISY, but the fact that it is a force outside of democracy and against democracy, with an inhuman ideology and rhetoric.
But how could DISY perceive this, given that every day they look more and more like each other, while at a European level the political groups of DISY and ELAM [in the European Parliament] are preparing to cooperate with each other?
The dilemma is clear. Opposing the triangle of the Presidential Palace, DISY and ELAM is the strong pole of democracy and progress, AKEL Left Social Alliance. With a strong Left playing a prominent role, to change the situation both in Cyprus and in Europe. This is the message they will receive.
23.05.2024
