Christodoulides praises govt, outgoing ministers at replacements’ swearing-in

President Nikos Christodoulides heaped praise upon his government and upon the ministers whom he relieved of their duties as their replacements were sworn in on Thursday morning. “With feelings of appreciation and joy, we welcome the new cabinet members, the commissioners, and all the appointees who from today become fellow travellers in the extremely honourable mission in which the Cypriot people have entrusted us to serve them,” he said. He said he is “certain” that “they will work tirelessly, methodically, and effectively to implement the government’s programme”, which, he insisted, “has social liberalism at its ideological foundation and serves five basic priorities”. Those priorities, he said, are firstly “a strong defence and security, a dynamic and outward-looking foreign policy with a European and western orientation”, as well as a “strong and resilient economy”, the “modernisation of our state and continuous reforms”, and “transparency, accountability, and combating corruption”. The fifth and final priority, he said, is “improving people’s everyday lives, through continuous investments which upgrade their lives”, while he added that above all, the government’s priority is “the resolution of the Cyprus problem”. He then stressed that “today is not a day for evaluating the government’s work”, but then said that “I would like to take this opportunity to express my particular satisfaction because in these three and a half years of government, projects and policies which we had promised the people have been implemented, are being implemented, and are being launched”. “Despite the challenges which even powerful countries are experiencing, our country’s economy is recording remarkable performances, among the best in recent years,” he said. He added that “thanks to the responsible policy which we are following, remaining far from approaches which in the past took our country on some very serious detours, the state’s fiscal adequacy enables us to go ahead with effective interventions for the benefit of households, workers, businesses, and the Cypriot people as a whole”. “At the same time, this adequacy allows us to continuously invest in the health, education, housing, and social welfare sectors, as well as many other sectors which improve people’s daily lives and upgrade their standard of living,” he said. On this front, he spoke of the tax reform implemented at the beginning of this year, the new model for special needs education announced earlier this week, and planned reforms to the pension system, saying that these policies “demonstrate in practice our strong political will to change our country”. Additionally, he spoke of “the continuous digitalisation of services, the modernisation of institutions, the abolition of bureaucratic procedures to improve the relationship between the individual and the state, strengthen the rule of law, serve transparency, and promote accountability”. He also made reference to what he described as “the effective management of the matter of migration”, which he said was “one of the most serious problems we inherited”, and stressed that his government’s response is “more proof of our ability to design and implement policies to address major problems and crises”. On the matter of defence, he said that the government is “practically strengthening the National Guard’s deterrent capacity”, while “upgrading and modernising our military infrastructure”. In addition, he said, “we are undertaking initiatives which upgrade and expand the Republic of Cyprus’ diplomatic footprint, with the country now recognised as a valuable partner, a reliable interlocutor, and a pillar of stability and a bridge of cooperation between Europe and the wider region”. These policies, he said, are “linked to our highest goal of liberation from occupation, the liberation and reunification of our homeland”. On this front, he said that “the developments of recent months, which culminated in a United Nations secretary-general visiting the island for the first time in 16 years and the appointment of a European Commission Cyprus problem envoy, justify the persistent efforts we have been making since we took over the running of the country”. These efforts, he said, are aimed at “resuming negotiations on the basis of the agreed framework, from the point at which they were interrupted at Crans-Montana, with respect for the convergences reached and the principles and values and laws of the European Union”. “Despite the problems, challenges, and difficulties, the results so far allow us to be cautiously optimistic that yes, it is possible to cover the last mile which will lead us to the end of the occupation and liberation,” he said. At this point, he made reference to the ministers whose terms in office he terminated, describing them as “valuable collaborators who worked methodically for the implementation of the government’s programme”, and describing them as “decisive”. Of outgoing transport minister Alexis Vafeades, he said that “I am sure that he is one of the few people who would take a bullet for me”, while of outgoing agriculture Maria Panayiotou, he said that she “always had a smile and worked hard”. He then said that outgoing culture deputy minister Vasiliki Kassianidou was “unwavering” and “one of the people who contributed knowledge, put in effort, and gave her best, with honesty and dedication, often under difficult circumstances”. “Along with my best wishes for their next professional step, I thank them from the bottom of my heart for contributing to the implementation of important projects and the establishment of policies which have positive impacts on working people,” he said. Then addressing the new appointees, new Transport Minister Evie Tsolaki, new Agriculture Minister Christos Senekis, and new Social Welfare Deputy Minister Tina Pavlou, he said that “you are taking over portfolios with zero time credit and are called upon to adapt immediately to a particularly demanding environment”. “Your experience and knowledge, combined with the hard work and dedication which I am sure you will demonstrate, are a guarantee that you will rise to the challenge,” he said. He then called upon them to “become quickly informed about the responsibilities of your portfolios, examine the pending issues, and make the most of your predecessors’ experience”. “My appeal is to ensure that you have good and creative cooperation with all the state’s institutions, with the legislative and judicial authorities, the political parties, the social partners,” he said. He also said that they must “have direct and personal contact with the people, even in the most remote villages”. “You must see and hear them, listen to them, and do whatever is required so that as a government, we can find solutions to problems and promote demands which are fair, justified, and feasible,” he said. He added that the new ministers are “assuming positions which have privileges, but more importantly, have obligations”. “You are assuming a public position which requires sacrifices from your personal life, which presupposes responsibilities towards the public, and imposes an unwavering commitment to legality, political ethics, and, of course, social morality,” he said. As such, he said, “my demand is that you put public interest above all else, and act on the basis of the constitutional imperative”. “You are members of a government with a clear centre-right political identity, which, however, is committed to serving all Cypriot citizens, regardless of ideological starting point, party preference, or social origin,” he said. “We know what we promised, what we want, and how to achieve it.” Alongside the three appointments and three departures, Clea Hadjistefanou-Papaellina was moved from the social welfare deputy ministry to the culture deputy ministry, and a number of changes were made to the list of presidential commissioners.