The first is a house hold name for the scandals that he loudly reveals throughout the country but few know his work in Paphos. The second is relatively unknown outside his municipality but quietly promotes one of the most ambitious development plans for the area.
The reason for the mayors of Paphos and Ayia Napa, Giannis Karousos and Faidonas Faidonos respectively, two new mayors with visions and ideas at the helm of the most touristic municipalities of Cyprus, but governed in a very different way.
Below are the commonalities and differences between the two mayors in the way they govern and the tools they use to communicate with their citizens and the general public.
Their common goal is to upgrade Ayia Napa and Paphos, respectively, into modern cities with history and culture, friendly to their citizens and to improve their competitiveness as tourist and investment destinations.
Although they were at the helm of their municipality in the midst of the financial crisis, they have to demonstrate the work they did as the first citizens of their local communities. Among other things, they have to demonstrate infrastructure and development projects of tens of millions.
Although the first one managed to change the image of Ayia Napa and tries to manage the finances of the municipality, he is not very well known to the general public as he works quietly focusing only on his municipality and looking ahead.
The second, on the other hand, managed in the last two years that he took the reins of the municipality of Paphos to become known to the last resident of Cyprus. Not so much for the work he produces in his municipality, but for the old scandals that he publishes at regular intervals.
Both are "new blood" on the political chessboard of our country, who took office shortly after their thirties. Both politicized from an early age and involved from a very early age with the public, they served their municipalities in various positions before being elected mayors. In fact, Giannis Karousos is the youngest mayor of Cyprus, until today.
The assumption of the mayoralty by both took place under special conditions, as the former claimed the mayoral seat for the first time in a by-election of mayor in 2013, after the death of the then mayor of Ayia Napa Antonis Tsokkou and the latter in 2015, after the resignation of the then mayor of Paphos Savva Verga and in the midst of scandals that plagued the municipality.
Both went down in both the by-elections in their municipalities and in the municipal elections of 2016 as independent candidates, supported mainly by the Democratic Alarm.
As for their differences, they focus mainly on the way they communicate with their citizens but also with their fellow citizens in general.
Karousos: Produces work quietly
On the one hand, Giannis Karousos, who works quietly but also in direct communication with his citizens, managed in almost five years as the first citizen of Ayia Napa, to change the image of his city as a tourist destination to better, to manage the finances of his municipality with the result that today they show a surplus, while several important projects are in progress.
Specifically, Mr. Karousos managed to increase the revenues of the municipality and at the same time to significantly reduce the expenses of the municipality in operating expenses, such as electricity, water supply, fuel, etc.
Among the successes credited to the mayor of Ayia Napa is the significant savings that occurred in the cost of the wastewater treatment plant, where the municipality from the € 2,9 million it paid per year, now pays € 975 thousand.
Also the designation of Ayia Napa as an urban center that resulted in being able to raise significant funds for projects from European funds. It is noted that from the € 60 million that Cyprus will receive for the 7 years, the municipality of Ayia Napa will receive € 10 million, the six for the renovation of the city center.
A more recent example is the innovative decision of the Municipality of Ayia Napa to return to the citizens the liquidity from the repayment of the loans guaranteed by the government, with development projects, which will be implemented through a participatory budget.
According to Mr. Karousos, the liquidity that will result from the repayment of the guaranteed loans will be around € 200 thousand, while in general the municipality will benefit approximately € 2 million.
Phaedo: Is the populist courageous?
On the other hand, the work produced by Faidonas Faidonos in the municipality of Paphos seems to take second place, as he has put it all together in an effort to combat entanglement, corruption and illicit financial interests not only by his municipality but also from all over Cyprus.
However, the mayor of Paphos, through this action, has managed to become known throughout Cyprus as he is regularly in the news with what he complains. The need of the citizens to name and punish the causes of the economic crisis, is a suitable ground for the relevant action of the exuberant personality of the mayor of Paphos, even for those who do not identify with him ideologically.
A black spot in his action is the fact that in several cases he has not documented the complaints he published, as a result of which he remains exposed. Asked why he is making public the scandals instead of reporting them to the police or the Attorney General for investigation, Mr. Faidonos said that corruption and decay in our country has spread its tentacles to all walks of life and with the publication of of these illegalities and irregularities, weakens the cover-up circuits and at the same time gives weapons to the authorities to investigate them.
The mayor of Paphos also states that he considers it his duty as a public figure, to make public scandals that come to his notice, as he believes that our country was led to economic disaster since it is built on decay and corruption. He also calls for the passage of legislation that will shield those who denounce these scandals, so that others can file a complaint.
Of course, there are many voices that characterize the mayor of Paphos, graphic and populist who likes to be in the news with exaggerations and extremes. Critics of Mr. Phaedon say that he benefited from the circumstances, as he took office at a time when the municipality was preparing to be named European Capital of Culture, which was a significant momentum in the implementation of a large number of projects in the municipality of Paphos.
For his part, Mr. Faidonos states that in Paphos, during his tenure as mayor, projects of almost € 40 million were carried out, of which in other circumstances a quarter of them would be lost in starters and oilings. In Paphos, from the consolidation, every year they enter the fund of € 2 million, which become projects, while another € 4 million were saved and collected during his mayoralty, according to Mr. Faidonos.
Important projects in the two municipalities
Meanwhile, large and small projects are under development in the two municipalities by private investors, both foreign and Cypriot, while at the same time the design and construction of a series of projects funded by state and European funds is underway.
For Ayia Napa, among other important projects implemented by the municipalities, stand out the project of regeneration of the coastal front, amounting to € 13 million (the project will be implemented in two phases, the first phase is under construction with an estimated completion time in May 2018 ), the project of restoration, promotion and promotion of the Medieval Monastery amounting to € 1.5 million (expected to start in January 2018 and end in July 2019) and the multifunctional park, costing € 2.5 million (to be announced by the municipality in November of 2018).
For its part, the municipality of Paphos proceeded with a series of projects within the framework of the cultural capital that have either been completed or are in progress. Among others, we mention the improvement of key roads, the renovation works of squares, (renovation of the traditional center and Kennedy Square, total cost € 8,9 million, the connection and promotion of the squares of October 28, Kostis Palamos and Dionysos, Dionysos expenditure € 4,1 million).
Source: Stockwatch / Eleni Charalambous