At the same time, the former Minister of Finance, Makis Keravnos, as a potentially common candidate, as the "K" understands from the information, fits perfectly with the standards of the Presidential candidate proclaimed by the president of DIKO, Marios Karoyan. The name of the former minister is considered that he can, under the circumstances, overcome the resistance that may arise in the ruling party. Marios Karoyan and Andros Kyprianou maintain a communication channel, with the latter knowing the intentions of the president of DIKO. Things, however, remain pending until AKEL receives the final "OK" from President Christofias.
The options are decreasing
In DIKO it is now clear that their choices are decreasing and "the orthodox political course requires only one of two choices", a DIKO executive typically noted in "K". In other words, either Marios Karoyan's party will proceed in cooperation with AKEL, but with a DIKO candidate, or the reflection on the support of Anastasiadis' candidacy should begin. A third option, which is on the table - probably for the price of the central space - is the joint course with other forces of the center (EDEK and EUROCO), something that is constantly losing ground within DIKO and is actually considered a "non-choice". ». The option for an independent descent of Mario Karoyan has been ruled out and will not even be discussed. Things will be put on the table next week during the meeting of the Executive Office, since in the previous meeting the issue of the presidium was not discussed due to the pending DIKO meeting - AKEL of last Friday.
Move by Karoyan
Extremely interesting is the way Mario Karoyan handled the situation, who seems to have found a way to lead things in the direction he wants. That is, on the one hand to leave both doors open (cooperation with AKEL but also cooperation with DISY), and on the other to "pressure" Hezekiah Papaioannou, to make decisions towards the presidential elections or at least to give him assurances about the her plans. The critical questions that arise in this regard are: First, whether AKEL wants cooperation. Secondly, whether he is ready to support a DIKO candidate. Third, when will he be ready to commit in such a case.
AKEL, sensing the danger that DIKO will support Anastasiadis' candidacy from the first round, maintains, according to information from the high roofs of DIKO, a communication channel and even allegedly sent "positive" messages to the DIKO leadership, as to the first two points, that is, that he wants the cooperation and is ready to support a DIKO candidate, meaning that he will not be forced to "resign" in main issues that concern the place and in addition that DIKO will not suggest a candidacy, which is "Red cloth" for the ruling party and its supporters. However, at the moment, the issue of time is pending, that is, when AKEL will be able to commit itself since President Christofias has not yet given the "green light".
The characteristics of the candidate
The fact that in the DIKO camp it was considered even impossible for the party voters to support the candidacy of Dimitris Christofias, was what led Mario Karoyan long ago to exclude public support for a possible candidacy of the current President. Also, the fact that a possible candidacy on the part of Mr. Karoyan himself would not have luck among AKEL voters, after he left the government in the critical period after Marie, helped the president of DIKO to choose the path he followed until today in the run-up to the presidential election.
So, after Marios Karoyan concluded that he can not become the President himself at the current juncture, he decided that with the appropriate strategy and tactics he can play a key role in the election of the new President. In order to achieve this, the crucial issue is for the specific candidacy to be able to unite DIKO first and foremost. The second characteristic is that the name of the candidate does not provoke serious reactions in the area of the Left and if possible is moderate. A third element that Mr. Karoyan has publicly raised is his technocratic training, so that he has the qualifications to restructure the state, along with the "citizens' demand" that the candidate should belong to the younger generation and not to the conspiracy of retirees. .
With these prerequisites and seeing that the candidacy of Nikos Anastasiadis has been launched in the DISY camp, the first choice for Mario Karoyan was to come up with his own proposal, with which he will go to AKEL and then consider other possible options for the election. President from the first round.
The demands of the DIKO leadership for the ideal candidate under the circumstances with increased chances of winning the first round, as "K" perceives from the relevant report, outline the profile of Makis Keravnos, without ruling out two other possible options. Mr. Keravnos, Minister of Finance during the DIKO-AKEL government under Tassos Papadopoulos and Chief Executive Officer of Hellenic Bank, clearly can function as a unifying element for DIKO.
At the same time, his possible candidacy will be lifted and any objections that Archbishop Chrysostomos may have had for another election of DIKO, an element that is considered extremely important, both for Mario Karoyan and for the party leadership as a whole. In fact, given the agreement between K. Kazamias and Archbishop Chrysostom for the taxation of the activities of the Church, it is considered that an electoral agreement between DIKO and AKEL with candidate Makis Keravnos will have the blessings of the Primate.
Information of "K" converges on the fact that Karoyan's intentions have reached the leadership of AKEL, not at last Friday's meeting, but through another - completely confidential - way. Hezekia Papaioannou, despite her stated intention to cooperate electorally with DIKO, did not react in a way that would reveal whether she is discussing names at this stage, mainly because she expects President Christofias to express his intentions for the party to move forward next stage.
Finally, it is understood that time is of great importance for DIKO, which is why Marios Karoyan in his last interview with "K" had stated that by May his party will have ended and this also acts as another lever pressure to AKEL.
Source: KATHIMERINI