Court rejects former Palaichori community leader’s bid to suspend dismissal

The former community leader of Palaichori Oreinis had his request to suspend a decision by the Nicosia district officer removing him from office rejected by the administrative court, the Legal Service announced on Tuesday. Elected in the 2024 local government elections, the community leader had challenged his dismissal after it emerged that he had previously been sentenced to imprisonment for an offence ”involving dishonesty or moral turpitude”. According to the announcement, the Communities Law provides for automatic removal from office in such circumstances. The former community leader had filed an appeal seeking to overturn the dismissal and requested that the decision be suspended pending the outcome of the case. In its interim ruling, the administrative court found no manifest illegality or irreparable harm that would justify suspending the decision, the Legal Service said. Citing recent case law, the court noted that “damage to reputation, political standing or the loss of a term in office did not constitute irreparable harm”, as these could be remedied if the applicant ultimately succeeded in his appeal. The court also stressed that the “public interest in ensuring the proper, orderly and ethically sound functioning of local government outweighed the personal consequences cited by the applicant”. The ruling concerns the request for an interim suspension and does not determine the outcome of the main appeal against the dismissal.