110 out of 340 complaints before the Anti-Corruption Authority have been examined, said Transparency Commissioner Haris Pogiatzis, during the delivery of the 2023 report to the President of the Republic.
Responding to a relevant question upon his departure from the Presidential Office, he noted that of the 110 cases examined, only 12 are proceeding with an investigation, as the rest have been dismissed.
During the meeting, the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, said that the decision to establish the Anti-Corruption Commission was “a wise decision taken by the previous government.” He noted that the very important work carried out by all members of the Commission is recognized.
"We approach you with absolute respect for your independence. We are here to support you and today to resolve any issues that may arise" in order to enhance both efficiency and time, as, as he said, in matters of justice, time is directly intertwined with the sense of justice.
The President stated that "we approach you as partners and fellow travelers in a great effort that we are making to ensure zero tolerance for corruption issues."
"There are no middle ground solutions in our approach," he clarified, adding that the goal is also "to ensure that there is no shadow on the name of our country, both internally, as we are primarily accountable to our citizens, but also internationally."
President Christodoulides noted that significant steps have been taken, while mentioning that in a recent meeting he had with FBI officials, they had submitted a report assessing their presence and their cooperation with the investigative authorities of the Republic of Cyprus, and their recommendations have already been forwarded to the competent Ministries and the Legal Service "so that we can move forward with the changes they suggest."
In this context, he said, the Authority's report will be studied by the Secretariat for Government Project Support and "we will proceed with the recommendations made, with the ultimate goal of strengthening the Commission, but also the results that we all owe to show the Cypriot people."
For his part, Mr. Pogiatzis told the President of the Republic that the report concerns 2023, which is the first year that the Authority has been fully operational. He noted that the Authority's biggest problem remains staffing.
He noted that since then, events have changed a lot, for the better. “We have implemented the lobbying law in its entirety in 2024,” he added, noting that officials are showing great interest in being informed about the issue and many meetings have been held on this matter. “We have 140 registrations to date, more than Greece, which implemented the law earlier, and another 35 registrations are pending.”
Regarding the complaints, he said that 110 out of 340 have been examined, noting that there are delays "because too much work is needed."
Regarding the monitoring of public actions on corruption issues, he said that they are in constant communication with the Deputy Minister to the President, Irene Piki. "We have undertaken and by the end of the month we will have an action plan ready, which we will begin to implement," noting that 7-8 people must deal with this issue daily.
"I believe that by the end of the first half of 2025, we will be able to accomplish a huge amount of work with the existing staff. Only some complaints will be a little late, the rest will all be up-to-date," he said.
Upon his departure from the Presidential Palace, Mr. Pogiatzis said that there was no interference from anyone “and we declare this with all categoricalness and satisfaction”. Responding to questions, he said that of the 110 complaints examined “we have proceeded with 12 investigations, of which around 7-8 are in progress and there will be results soon, which we will announce, sometimes with names, sometimes without”. He noted that the announcement of the results will begin in the coming months. “There are some that have been rejected and have been announced”, he said.
Regarding whether any cases of violation of lobbying legislation have been identified, he said that "so far there has not been any violation, even though the law has been implemented and communication forms and all communications that are made have begun to be submitted."
Regarding the investigation into the complaint about Makarios Drousiotis' book, Mr. Pogiatzis said that it is "the largest investigation, it is an ex officio investigation, even though we were called by two politicians to carry it out." He noted that it began in April 2024. "I believe that by the end of May at the latest we will have the findings. More than 100 witnesses have been heard and there are some final witnesses to be heard and I imagine that Mr. Anastasiades will be among them, who will be one of the last."
Source: KYPE
