Statement by the General Secretary of the C.C. of AKEL A. Kyprianou on the result of the European elections
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 26 May 2019, Nicosia
First of all, we want to express our warm thanks to all the people who helped AKEL – Left – New Forces fulfill the goal we had set. That is to say, to elect two MEP’s and further increase our strength.
We want to assure them that the strength they have given us we shall seek to vindicate with a lot of hard work.
We would have been happier today if the good result for us was accompanied by a bigger participation in the elections. We insist and shall persist in our efforts to tackle abstention by giving a meaning to political dialogue and projecting the hope for a better life for our people.
We also express our satisfaction with the fact that voters have blocked the path of the far- right to the European Parliament. However, we point out with concern the percentages recorded by the ultra-right ELAM party. We hope the parties that stood in opposition το it in the EP elections will continue to do so after the elections as well. Now no one can claim they don’t know. Now everyone has to take on his/her responsibilities.
We would also like to thank our Turkish Cypriot compatriots who have vindicated our choice to present a bi-communal ballot – a symbol of our vision for the liberation and reunification of our homeland. In doing so, a new and big chapter has opened for Cyprus, the Cyprus problem and the relations between the two communities. We will continue to invest in this chapter, struggling with our Turkish Cypriot compatriots within the framework of a broad anti-occupation and anti-fascist front. The bicommunal character of our ballot was attacked fiercely on both sides of the barbed wire of division.
The ruling DISY party in this election campaign showed its true face. It engaged in scaremongering in an effort to sow and spread fear. Even worse, it sowed suspicion towards our Turkish Cypriot compatriots. We endured and withstood this black propaganda. The Cypriot people sent out a message of unity and hope for the future of our homeland. DISY is now called upon to draw its conclusions from the decline of nearly 10% it has recorded in comparison to the percentages it recorded in the previous European elections. This fall in percentages sends the clear message of the popular mandate for a change of course in Cyprus and Europe. This is what our task is as the strongest opposition party, with the additional duty of projecting an alternative path and putting forth a perspective to our people and our homeland.
Finally, we would like to express a big thank you from the bottom of our hearts to the militants, members and friends of AKEL, as well as to members from other movements and organizations that worked hard with us throughout this period. Together we have achieved a significant and promising result.
The increase recorded in AKEL’s electoral strength, both in relation to the previous European elections, but also to the last parliamentary elections, sends out the message that more and more people are turning to AKEL, rewarding its consistency and looking to the steadfastness and determination with which AKEL is once again at the frontline of struggles.
We pledge to vindicate the trust that the people have shown in us today and to struggle with even more determination for the solution of the Cyprus problem and to reverse the anti-social government policies that are plunging Cypriot society into inequality and choking it with interwoven interests and corruption.
