ALMA has issued a statement regarding the criminal investigators appointed to examine matters raised in the book Mafia State, describing the developments as a new fiasco.
According to the statement, “the Government and, above all, the President of the Republic continue to fail to understand the most basic issues of conflict of interest and institutional credibility.”
ALMA said recent developments surrounding the appointment of independent criminal investigators to probe the alleged “mafia state” scandal confirm that the Government, and particularly the President, still do not grasp fundamental questions of conflicts of interest and institutional integrity.
The movement noted that until the resignation of the first appointed investigator, the Government insisted there was no conflict-of-interest issue and criticised those who raised concerns.
“Today, its own actions have proved it wrong,” the statement said. “Yet instead of learning from the fiasco, media reports suggest it is now considering appointing the lawyer representing Tal Dillian in Greece.”
According to ALMA, this does not involve someone who once practised criminal law and is now serving in a different institutional role. Rather, it concerns an active private lawyer whose professional career has long been associated with high-profile corruption cases, some of which had a Cypriot dimension.
The statement referred to the lawyer’s defence of a Cypriot businessman in the well-known Akis Tsochatzopoulos case and the defence of Leonidas Bobolas in connection with the Kotsiatis landfill scandal. More significantly, ALMA noted that the lawyer continues to practise and currently represents Tal Dillian in Greece in relation to the wiretapping scandal.
The movement argued that this is incompatible with sound institutional practice, which, in such sensitive and high-profile investigative assignments, requires individuals who no longer have active involvement as defence lawyers in corruption cases and who project complete institutional neutrality.
ALMA also criticised President Nikos Christodoulides for maintaining that he will personally decide on the appointment of investigators, despite what it described as his own obvious conflict of interest.
The statement noted that the President served as a minister in the Anastasiades administration, is a witness in the matter under investigation and that his political career is closely linked to former President Nicos Anastasiades.
“He therefore cannot present himself as the guarantor of the independence of this investigation,” the statement concluded.
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