Ionas Nikolaou submitted his resignation after a meeting with the President for reasons of straightforwardness, as he said, noting that it was accepted by the President.
He declined to comment on whether police chief Zacharias Chrysostomou should resign with him. However, he made sure to fire direct shots at the police for any omissions and misconduct, informing that he would turn to the independent committee of complaints against the police to conduct an investigation so that any responsibilities and omissions would be revealed.
He said it was unfair to blame the government and the justice minister as they had no information about the police investigations. He stressed that the last few days were particularly difficult for him on a personal level, not because he would resign or not, but because his thoughts were with the families of the victims.
Mr. Nikolaou stated that he will proceed at a later stage to a press conference to present the work he performed during his term.
President: With great sadness I accepted the resignation of Jonah
"I met today with the Minister of Justice and Public Order, Mr. Ionas Nikolaou, who submitted his resignation to me for reasons of political correctness, regarding acts or omissions on the part of the Police Corps in the investigation of complaints about missing persons.
I have to admit that it is with great sadness that I have accepted his resignation because I am deprived of the services of one of my closest associates. I would like to emphasize the political ethos that Mr. Nikolaou has always distinguished and is displaying.
Ionas Nikolaou has conscientiously performed his duties as Minister and leaves behind a multifaceted work, especially in the field of reforms of the judicial and penitentiary system, but also of the police force. While at the same time he has contributed decisively to the preparation of a series of reform bills that did not concern his Ministry.
It submits its resignation at a time when it is in the final stages of completing a radical reform of its justice system.
Therefore, accepting his resignation, I asked him to remain in his position to bring before the Council of Ministers within the next few days all the Bills for the reform of the justice system that is currently under legal review in the Legal Service.
I would like to take this opportunity to reiterate that I share the shock and disgust of society for these unprecedented crimes. I want to assure the Government of its determination to fully investigate the brutal murders, but also to fully investigate the acts or omissions related to the complaints about missing persons ".
Because the special meetings of Jonah-Chief with the President
The decision to see the Minister of Justice and the Chief of Police separately was made by the President of the Republic Nikos Anastasiadis after the announcement issued by the Minister of Justice Ionas Nikolaou on Wednesday afternoon.
According to valid information, the content of Mr. Nikolaos' announcement was not a thunderbolt for Nikos Anastasiadis. The same sources note that after the content of the announcement but also the direct shots of Mr. Nikolaos towards the police leadership, he considered it more appropriate to meet with the two men separately. It is worth noting that the personal meeting between President and Iona is still in progress, exceeding one hour.
He laid a carpet
"I have made my personal decisions, about which I expected to inform the President of the Republic after his return from abroad. The non-disclosure of my decisions to date is due to the fact that I had a duty to inform the President of the Republic first. "During the meeting that I have requested and will have with the President, I will inform him of my decisions and I will explain to him the reasons that led me to them," said Ionas Nikolaou.
On Tuesday, the vice-president of DISY and chairman of the Legal Committee, George Georgiou, had told state channels that if he had been the Minister of Justice he would have already resigned, not for reasons of personal responsibility but for reasons of dignity. A move that strengthened the rumor that DISY, shortly before the elections, wants through a move to alleviate this great crisis.
It should be noted that with the revelation of the murders, Ionas Nikolaou kept a low profile with sources from the Ministry of Justice pointing out that the goal was to complete the investigations first. Government sources estimate that the submission of the resignation of Ionas Nikolaos is considered a given, after the announcement he issued, however it remains open whether it will remain until the completion of the investigations. The question is how the President will move and whether he will accept his resignation.
Source: Kathimerini